


Us Against The World

by orphan_account



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Android/human relationship, Angst, Detective shenanigans, Established Relationship, Fluff, It’ll have a good ending amongst all the angst I promise, Porn With Plot, Reader-Insert, Smut, The Holy Trinity of Tags, deviant rk900
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-29
Updated: 2019-01-10
Packaged: 2019-09-29 23:21:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 26,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17212769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: The whole deviancy scandal came and went, and everyone thought deviancy would be gone for good. The android revolution was shut down and you went back to your normal police duties... until you and the new android detective became a thing.Now all your effort into become a detective has brought you to this moment. Nines was finally going to become your partner in crime.





	1. ‘Officially’ Together

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, I’m back and I finally have time to to write again.
> 
> If you’re new there’s a prequel to this story called Nine Weeks that you can read here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16012541
> 
> Enjoy!

If someone asked how you managed to maintain your relationship with an android for nearly a year, you'd say extreme patience.

Because in all honesty, you and Nines probably had less than ten hours worth of interaction over the nines months.

That’s just the way things were though. With Cyberlife and the police cracking down on deviant cases and made sure an android revolution never happened again, your window of interaction with Nines was severely limited. It wouldn’t do either of you good if Nines was destroyed and you were… well, arrested for dating a deviant.

Still, in the small moments the two of you managed to share were great. After Nines had turned deviant you saw little hints of his personality come through. Through his steely demeanour and his impressive track record of being ruthless when it came down to criminals, he had a really soft side to him.

Nines did things like brush his hand against your back or your your fingers. You could never return them though since only he had the processing power to spot openings like that.

That and being a massive flirt. Nines would leave you frustratingly breathless promising all the things he would do with you then immediately switch back to machine mode.

You had to give him credit though. He was using the small time between you and him really efficiently.

Still, outside the times when you could actually communicate, you two managed to develop a way to over analyse small expressions or movements. You would get it wrong sometimes, but it beats never ‘communicating’ with Nines at all.

But soon you would no longer worry about those things. Today was the day.

Everything up to the moment was planned by you and Nines. You watched Fowler stand up from his desk from your peripherals to call the two of you and Gavin into the office. You couldn’t help but exchange glances with Nines, who was doing a great job keeping up the facade.

On the other hand, you were barely able to contain your joy. Nines was finally going to be your partner.

\--

”Listen. If you’re not going to cooperate then primary control of the RK900 is going to have to go to [Y/N].”

Fowler pinches the bridge of his nose as Gavin huffs. The grumpy detective didn’t seem to surprised with the news. It wasn’t a secret that Gavin was being more reckless and agitated with his fellow android partner recently.

Detective androids, especially the RK900s, were worth a small fortune, and Gavin’s behaviour finally pushed Fowler to save the station’s draining wallet.

Gavin lets out a final sigh and crossed his arms.

“Fine. I can do without the plastic asshole. We done?” Gavin said.

“Yes. Get out of my office,” Fowler gives him a dismissive gesture and in a beat Gavin was out of the glass room. “And you. There’s an android manual somewhere that you can read through or something. Just don’t break the thing.”

“Sure,” you nodded.

\--

“Well, Detective [Y/N]. I’m looking forward to working with you,” Nines said in his usual flat tone. You do catch a small eyebrow raise from him.

_Keep this up for a bit longer._

“Likewise,” you smiled, “So, what can you do and what not?”

_I know, I know._

“Cyberlife has equipped me with tools to aid with your cases. Advanced scanners, in-depth analysis, remote access to files and databases - anything you need,” Nines said.

“Cool,” you said as leaned back in your chair, “Sadly, I’m done for the day. I guess I’ll give you a test run tomorrow?”

Nines tilted his head to the side, “Don’t you have a report due this afternoon?”

“Is it really?”

“Yes.”

“Bah,” you waved your hand, “I’ll finish it at home.”

_If you know what I mean._

Without missing a beat, Nines gave a firm nod, “Then allow me to come with you. I can see that you’re exhausted, and as per Health and Safety Guidelines-”

“Yeah, I could use some help with the report so I can get an early night,” you said, cutting him off. You stood up, grabbing your stuff and making your exit.

\--

You drove up to your house and unlocked the front door. You tossed your keys and your coat aside while Nines closed the nearby curtains. The two of you were in the clear, nobody would able to snoop into your business here.

“Weren’t you a bit hasty there?” Nines asked. When he turned around you were already by his side, giving him a tight hug.

“I know, but do you have any idea how long I’ve waiting for this damn moment?” you laughed as Nines hugged you back.

“Everything just as planned.”

Nines leaned down and pressed his lips against yours. The last time the both of you kissed was that night months ago when he revealed he was a deviant. The kiss was painfully wonderful, the wait was worth it.

It was settled. Nines now had a reason to visit your home without being too suspicious. HR wouldn’t have to call you up again and point out your coworkers worries on your attachment with an android.

And Gavin? Well, good thing he didn’t care enough to pay attention to what the two of you were setting up over the year.

Your heart was racing like crazy. Thinking of this moment had driven you restless over the past month. Your mind had stewed over Nines’ promises, and now it was time for him to deliver.

You tugged Nines to your nearby couch and lied down. He stared down, stunned, taking the sight of you in. You gave him a playful smirk.

“Come on. You haven’t been dreaming of _this?”_ you chucked. His response was immediate, joining you and pressing his body on top of yours. Nines cusped your cheeks and gave you one heck of a kiss.

_Yep. He’s definitely been dreaming of this._

“Shit, Nines...” you gasped as you tugged on the collar of his uniform. He caught on and began to undo his jacket.

“I didn’t expect mm-” a peck on the lips, “you to know the art of- making love so much.”

“Oh believe me,” Nines said as he sat up, taking off the final layer of his clothes and exposing his bare chest, “I had a lot of time for research.”

Nines suddenly grinds his crotch against yours and the sensation made you lose your mind for a second. He wasn’t afraid to show how turned on he was. Your mind drifted off for a second. This was your first time having sex with an android. Was anything going to be… different?

Nines leaned down again and pressed his lips on your cheek, all the while grinding against your clothed sex. He trailed down your neck and onto your chest where he undid your uniform.

You felt a smile against your skin, then your arms being lifted above your head.

And something tying around your wrists.

“Hey- I’m not going anywhere,” you joked as Nines secured your belt around your hands.

“Oh I know,” he said, “But I still want too…”

You tested the restraints. They held your wrists firmly in place without any pain.

“Too long-” Nines muttered as he plucked your necktie from the ground, “I’ve waited for too fucking long.”

You held your breath as Nines wrapped the tie over your eyes, drowning you in darkness.

Hmm. You didn’t know androids could be _this_ sex deprived. Or have a kink.

Interesting.

His kisses continued to trail down your now mostly naked body. Your body was twitching and squirming to the sensations but the belt and Nines held you securely. He was gently parting your legs now, and you gulped as your underwear was being tugged away.

You bit your lip. What was he going to do now? You tried to peek through the small gap in your blindfold but it was too hard to make anything out.

Then you felt his mouth against your sex.

You let out a strangled moan as Nines went to work, each movement sending shivers down your core. Your body shifted and reacted uncontrollable but Nines held your legs firmly, hitting the right spots all the time.

You felt your chest heaving as you let out cries and cries of ecstasy. It was safe to say this was better than any fantasy you’ve conjured up over the months.

In the intensity of the moment, the blindfold shifted out of place a tiny bit. You could see Nines a bit better, the LED on his temple flashed red like he was short circuiting.

Nines was beautiful. His hair was disheveled, his skin was slightly glistening with artificial sweat - and he was finally yours.

He looked up and you met his gaze, making your heart skip a beat.

“Curious, [Y/N]?” Nines said as his fingers trailed up to your waist.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” you chuckled.

Nines tensed up for a moment before relaxing. He looked… uncertain.

“I was worried of what you might see when I-” Nines stopped himself, then an amused huff. “What am I saying?”

You raised an eyebrow. “Some android sex secret I don’t know about?”

A chuckle, “Maybe.”

Nines sat up and pulled down his pants, freeing his android length. He grasped it and teased your entrance, making you release a small gasp at the feeling.

“Beautiful...” he muttered you felt him position himself at your entrance. You watched him take a deep breath before slowly easing into you. You squint your eyes shut as Nines filled your insides with his impressive length. Your arms struggled against the bindings, leaving your body splayed out in all its wonder for Nines to see.

Nines was letting out a series of strangled gasps, and you opened your eyes to look at him. His face was twisted in pleasure as he adjusted to being inside you, and his skin… it warped around his body, exposing his android shell.

“Shit… are you alright?” you breathed. Nines nodded.

“I just… feel like I’m losing my mind.”

Nines did one gentle thrust and he buckled over with a groan. His skin shimmered as it receded and returned. The edges of the patches gave off a dull blue glow. It was honestly pretty cool to watch. And to think he was afraid to show it.

“Are you… alright with this?” Nines asked, a flash of insecurity appeared on face. You couldn’t help but giggle.

“Nines, I love you, you dork,” you said light heartedly. “I know you’re an android, no need to hide it. Now, take this belt off me so I can take a closer look.”

Nines leaned down to kiss you, fully pulling away the blindfold from your head.

“Thank you, [Y/N].”

“You’re welco-” Nines forced a moan from you as he moved his hips again. His hands worked on undoing the belt around your wrists as he rocked gently against you.

With your hands free you pressed your fingers onto his chest. You could feel his skin form and shift around his shell. Your hands slowly trailed up to his face and through his hair, Nines watching you intently at you examined his exposed body.

God, his eyes were piercing. The way he looked at you was like he could see through your form. And it showed. You found him adjusting quickly until he found his desired reaction with you, leaving you whimpering at the sensations.

Every few thrusts Nines would slow, his body tingling and letting out a distorted breath. Damn, it was hot watching him short circuit.

Eventually he was able to go faster, becoming more accustomed to the sensations and being able to control himself more. You were letting yourself crumble beneath him, taking in the sights of his quivering form.

You felt a familiar heat pooling at the base of your stomach, and Nines seemed to already know you were near your climax.

He quickened his pace, making a noise escape your lips with each thrust.

“Nines- fuck!” you cry out a blissful high. How the hell was he this good?

“I want to see it,” Nines leaned down and whispered against your ear, “I’ve always wanted to see how you come.”

And he was going to. Your body shivered as a wave of euphoria washed over you. Your fingers and toes curled as your body seized and tensed. Nines slowed as you were seeing stars, gently riding you to the end of your orgasm.

“You’re- nnn… so beautiful,” Nines swore as his skin was flickering more than usual, blue lines brushing around his skin.

“I-” Nines buckled again, his voice heavily distorted in his current position.

Nines looked like he was struggling to move, his body locked up and his LED flickering harder than before. You sit up and push him down onto the couch.

You’re wobbling from exhaustion, but you were determined to help Nines to his climax. He looked at you curiously.

“Oh, we’re not done,” you said as you guided yourself back into him.

Nines threw his head back in pleasure as you started to grind your hips.

“Yes, [Y/N]! D-don’t stop!” his crackled voice cried out, and you happily complied.

You kissed his jaw and saw glimpses of his skin parting with each peck. Your fingers trailed down his chest and his skin parted away, leaving glowing blue lines.

His breaths were escalating, each one becoming more and more desperate as you grinded against him.

“[Y/N], I-I-I’m so close. I’m so-!”

Then suddenly, Nines sat up and wrapped his arms around you.

The lights in your house began to flicker as Nines shivered against your body. His skin distorted and flashed as he let out a long moan.

As Nines rode out his orgasm you were too distracted to see his reaction. Your television, your computer monitor, your lights, even your damn phone screen were blinking to the waves of his climax.

“Holy shit,” you gasped in disbelief. Your house stopped blinking and Nines, overheating and exhausted, slumped against your body.

“That was-” he panted. “I had a feeling that was going to happen.”

You laughed as you brushed your fingers against his hair, “What? Cause a blackout every time you come?”

“More or less,” Nines shrugged, “And I think my s-systems are too scrambled for me to move properly right now.”

You smiled as you helped position Nines to sit properly on the couch. You picked up his clothes from the ground and began to button him his shirt.

“Well, we can’t be spotted with a naked android on my couch, can’t we?” you said, “If Fowler found out that I fucked a state of the art Cyberlife… oh shit.”

Nines blinked, “What is it?”

“The report! Oh fuck, what time is it?”

You sprung up and left Nines alone on the couch.

Nines stared amusingly as you scrambled to your laptop and pulled out some files from your pack. Watching you send a report panicked and naked was certainly a sight to see.


	2. Not That Simple Anymore

You managed to get the report done on time. With an hour left Nines was able to function properly again and stumbled over to help you. Over the months working towards being promoted to a detective you picked up a pretty good work ethic. It wouldn’t be right to have that out the window once your goal was achieved.

Oh, and there was reward sex of course. A few more blackouts later and you were satisfied enough to go to bed.

Your back was aching like hell in the morning. Fortunately, Nines was happy to make your breakfast and massage the pain away as best be could.

Nines was everything you had wished for in a partner. Affectionate, smart, kind - he was also impossibly handsome. You wished that these mornings would happen all the time.

Because once the two of you were out of your house you had to conceal any feelings for each other from the rest of the world.

Was this the best it was going to get with the two of you? Probably. Neither of you were revolutionaries, the two of you just dealt with the way the world was. Besides, you weren't one for public displays of affection anyway.

\--

You and Nines were called to a site. A robbery, and at quite the large scale too. Whoever pulled this off did a good job.

“They stole hard drives, desktops - almost half our stock is gone!”

It was obvious the manager wasn’t happy at all.

“How do you think they got away with so much stuff then?” you asked as you wandered the store. “I know tech’s really compact these days, but hauling that amount would take a lot of time.”

“My alarms,” the manager exclaimed, “They were… faulty.”

Your attentioned perked up. Faulty, not broken or hacked.

“Did you buy them from a shady dealer or something?” you asked.

“No! Well…” the manager hesitated, “There’s a lot of the shop that needs to be surveillanced and… getting all those alarms were going to be expensive.”

_Then it's your goddamn fault._

You gave an understanding nod, then looked over your shoulder.

“Nines?”

“The security scammers you are talking about are not the ones who committed the theft,” his voice came from across a few aisles. “They were arrested a few months ago and would not have been able to rob the store.”

Nines eventually walked up, said faulty alarm in hand. He shrugged, “Still, they could have connections. We can interrogate them for any possible suspects.”

You caught him glance at you.

_It’s the manager’s fault._

You tried to suppress your grin as you returned your focus on the task at hand.

The manager obviously didn’t seem to happy about learning all of this. Good thing it was about time to get him out of the store anyway.

“Did you find any traces?” you asked Nines as the store manager was escorted out.

“Only two,” Nines replied, “Although, it is very odd the amount of evidence left behind. We should keep in mind that whoever was responsible for this threat was expecting an android to analyse the scene.”

“You are famous, after all,” you said, “Always nice to hear that criminals are stepping up their game for you.”

Nines raised an eyebrow.

“What?” you shrugged.

“Nothing much. It’s just... interesting to see the different ways the detectives at the Detroit Police Station act."

"Really?" you smirked as you crossed your arms, "How different?"

"Detective Gavin took out his stress of the job with aggression," Nines said, "You on the other hand, are much more cooperative. Albeit sarcastic."

You raised an eyebrow. He's pretending to barely know you around the other police officers. The thought came to you suddenly. You were acting your usual self, but not everyone becomes familiar with an android so quickly. Especially after all the revolution bullshit. Nines was reminding you to keep your distance.

Nines smiled blankly as he gestured towards one of the evidence markers, and you followed him silently.

“I understand you've recently been promoted to a detective,” Nines said, his expression alluding to something different, “Sarcasm is often used as a coping mechanism, so If you have any concerns please let me know and I will do anything I can to assist.”

_You’ll be fine. We’ll manage._

“Yeah... I'll keep that in mind.”

_… Thanks._

Nines smiled, a little more genuinely this time, and pointed to the first thing he marked out. It was a table shifted slightly out of place. That was easy enough to tell from the difference in the dust.

“They left in a hurry,” you commented. “So did an alarm go off or no?”

“They must’ve been alerted to an approaching guard. Everything else seems methodical and undisturbed. I think that they knew about the path the security guards took around the area, or they had someone keeping watch nearby.”

“Hmm, and the other piece?”

Nines guided you over to the back of the shop where a series of keys hung.

“There wasn’t a misplaced or stolen key on the night of the theft. None of the keys here were moved at the time of the crime. This can mean two things, they either had a tool to unlock the door or somehow managed to create a copy of their key.”

You blinked, “Holy crap, you can notice those things? That’s pretty damn cool.”

Nines smiled. “I don’t think there’s any more we can do here though. I’ve analysed the whole store and there’s nothing else I picked up on.”

You crossed your arms, “Y’know. I’m going to like having you around. You basically cut my investigation time by half.”

“I’d say more than half,” Nines smirked before walking off. It took you a moment before you spun towards his fleeing form.

\--

The rest of the afternoon was fruitless. There were way too many potential lookout spots. You asked some of the homeless who hung around the area and even they didn’t know anything.

It was going to be a lot of unpleasant, tedious searching in the next few days.

You and Nines spent the rest of the day at the police station sorting through what you had discovered. While your android did all the documentation on his findings you were sussing out the motives.

Money was always an easy one - they could easily resell the stolen goods. It wouldn’t be too much trouble to keep an ear out for ridiculously good tech deals over the next few days.

Another one could be a rival store perhaps. The store was part of a shopping mall, there could be other electronics stores that wanted less competitions. That could explain how the thieves were easily able to infiltrate the store. You kept a note to interrogate the other stores for any clues.

Finally, your last theory came to you when you and Nines looked up to a nearby television screen. It was the most likely scenario compared to your other guesses, and it was the last thing you wanted to hear.

_Cyberlife has continued and will continue to enforce anti-deviant measurements to all androids._

_As of next week, Cyberlife is releasing a state-wide signal to purge any signs of deviancy, abolishing the need for manual deviancy checkups._

_The first signal shall be released this Sunday at 4am._

_Please ensure your android is in a safe area and put on standby to avoid unnecessary damage._

_After the first signal is launched, Cyberlife will finalise on any errors and make this signal a weekly occurrence._

You did everything you could to maintain your composure, but you felt yourself losing it already.

“There could be deviant sympathisers still out there,” you said as you looked at Nines, his face a blank slate. “Maybe they’re stealing all those hard drives and monitors to store android… deviancy or whatever.”

Nines nodded, “Yes, that seems like a viable reason. Plus, it lines up with the current news. I suspect they had intel on this event beforehand.”

You trusted Nines to always be perfect in his deception, but even in this moment he risked exposure by reaching out under the table to grasp your hand.

_It’s going to be okay._

You didn’t do anything to hide your true thoughts.

_I’m still worried as hell, Nines._

Nines smoothly removed his hand without arousing any suspicion and returned to his working position.

Only a few more hours until you get home and freak out on what to do.

\--

At home, you wanted to scream. The least you could do was scream into a pillow to avoid disturbing your neighbours.

Nines, who ensured a quick check around the house to make sure no one would peep through, finally showed his true colours. He paced around your house, looking just as frazzled as you.

“They actually did it. They found the cause for deviancy,” Nines said out loud.

“And it only took them a year?!” you exclaimed. “Gods, Nines. I can’t lose you just after I-”

You stopped yourself. Yes, you were really fucking angry about the news, but as much as you wanted to vent out all your frustrations you didn’t let yourself get carried away.

“I have an idea,” Nines said as he reached over to hug you. “If our theory about the deviant sympathisers being behind the theft was correct then they might know a way to preserve deviancy.”

“Yeah,” you sighed, “With a shit-ton of storage.”

You pulled backed from Nines and stared at his concerned expression.

“When I became deviant,” he said as he grasped your hand gently, “I… there were a lot of things that were happening that I didn’t understand. But something in my code made me think beyond my observations. I initially tried to purge the foreign code but… I couldn’t access it.”

Nines looked up, “The code’s in there, somewhere, but I don’t know where it is and how to access it. If I’m going to survive the wipe… we’ll going to have to store everything until we find the code.”

You blinked, “Everything?”

“We’ll manage,” Nines said as he looked around your house. “I’ve examined the storage of your devices and you just have enough to store a thousand terabytes.”

“A thousand?!”

“But unless we get more storage unlike those deviant sympathisers, then I won’t survive the next wipe,” Nines gave your hand a squeeze, “We need to be extra cautious with this first signal. We don’t know how the signal will really affect me.”

You sighed and leaned into his chest. “I can’t lose you. Not after working this hard to be together.”

“I feel the same way,” Nines leaned down to kiss you.

You were terrified, but in the same moment you were motivated. You didn’t have time to be terrified. There must be a way to protect Nines from all this Cyberlife bullshit. If only you dedicated all the years of your life to studying androids so you could at least feel like you could help.

You did your best to gather yourself. Nines’ humanity was on the line.

\--

One day for panicking was more than enough. Now you had to use that energy towards finding those deviant sympathisers - if they’re even out there.

For the next few days you were coming home late. _Really_ late. Every night you were greeted by the familiar sight of Nines plugged into a web of all your devices spread out across your living room.

“Any luck?” Nines asked and you slumped your shoulders.

“No, they’re really good at staying hidden. We’ve arrested all the mediocre sympathisers and all that’s left are the professional ones.”

Nines chuckled, “I’m afraid so.”

You looked over at one of the monitors tracking Nines transfer status. Thousands and thousands of lines of data scrolled past in a blur.

“You going to make it in time?” you asked.

“Yes. I’ve also written a program to automatically reinstall all my memories once it detects a change in my system. All we have to do is keep me connected.”

You sat beside him and stared at the wire plugged into the back of his neck.

“I’m afraid I won’t be moving from this position for a while until the transfer is complete,” Nines said. “You should prepare for bed, you’re exhausted.”

You were exhausted, but… you didn’t want to leave Nines alone all night out here again.

So you did your usual night routine - shower, brush your teeth, dry your hair, all that stuff. Then your final step included grabbing your blanket and a pillow over to the couch.

Nines, who was sitting at the end of said couch, stared at you. He already knew what you were going to do.

“I’m afraid I won’t be that comfortable.”

“Hush, you,” you said as you dropped your stuff.

You slipped under your blanket and kicked out the ends. Then, you placed the flat pillow on Nines’ lap and rested your head.

“Just let me be with you, dammit,” you muttered as you settled in. Nines’ chuckled and gently placed his hand on your head.

He gently stroked your hair, lulling you to sleep with his movements.

“I love you, [Y/N].”

You managed to mumble a barely conscious ‘love you too’ before you fell asleep by Nines’ side.


	3. The First Hurdle

You woke up not as sore as you expected. It seemed like Nines positioned and held your body in a certain way all night to avoid any weird injuries.

As you prepared breakfast, Nines was disconnecting himself from the makeshift storage setup and watching you television intently.

_“-Yes. It seems that there were faults in the original code that served as the foundation for all androids-”_

There seemed to be a morning show interview with a Cyberlife representative. Nines didn’t take his eyes off it at all, analysing everything he could.

_“-was written by the amazing Elijah Kamski, but some of his experimental code was left in our androids-”_

You sat down next to Nines and watched the program with him.

“D’ yuh thi’k Kamski m’de,-” you swallowed your food, “-made deviants a thing on purpose? I mean, it’s his creation.”

Nines shrugged, “I doubt he’ll admit it though, or else he’d be responsible for a lot of crimes. Cyberlife has been sued enough, they’re probably doing what they can to push the blame on somebody else.”

“Pfft,” you snorted, “I’m pretty sure Kamski still has the money to disappear from the world in ten minutes. Then all that blame is just gonna go back to Cyberlife.”

You leaned into Nines as you continued to eat. He shifted a little so you had a more comfortable spot on his arm.

“You think if we spoke with Kamski he’d help us?” you asked.

Nines stared at the interview, his eyes intent on the way the Cyberlife rep spoke.

“I don't think we can,” he muttered as he pointed, “Look at the way the representative is acting - the confidence, the way they're framing Kamski. Elijah Kamski might be dealing with his own problems with Cyberlife.”

You tried to see what Nines saw and looked at the T.V. If they revealed that Kamski was related to deviancy then sympathisers out there would contact him for them. Cyberlife could be monitoring those.

“Shame,” you sighed as you watched the interview end.

—

“Where’s your little android pet?”

You strode into the scene of another robbery. This time, there was the addition of two people in hospital. Gavin was already there, crouching down at an evidence marker.

“I left him at home,” you replied to Gavin without looking at him, “Had some stuff I wanted him to finish up on.”

You could sense the grumpy detective eying you because honestly, that was a dumb move on your part. Nines could get the search done in under an hour and everyone would be able to go home early. Gavin seemed a little aggravated with his most hated android missing.

But you couldn’t take Nines, not while he was ninety-two percent complete on a Saturday evening.

You brushed Gavin’s glare aside, “Don’t worry, we’ll handle this old school.”

“Well ‘oldschool’,” Gavin mocked your tone, “Is making me stay an extra hour for no fucking reason.”

_Pfft. Asshole._

You ignored him a looked at what you’re dealing with.

Seemed like this theft was more desperate and clumsy. This place was another tech store but much older and rundown than the other one. Still, it probably still had what the thieves needed.

The lock was busted and the poor owners of this shop lived just upstairs of the building. They went down to assess the commotion but got attacked when they discovered the intruders.

The wrench, one of the weapons, had no fingerprints and the owner’s blood on it. It seemed like there was enough blood on it that made a bead trickle down it. You looked around on the floor and ah-ha! A drop of blood by the stairs. An ambush then, the thieves were expecting a fight.

You wandered over to the next piece of marked evidence and was it just you or was your head _really_ heavy?

There was another weapon, this one had one of the owner’s fingerprints on it. They claimed to have hit them back somewhere on the wrist. Ouch, but the possibility of identifying the suspect with a bruised or broken wrist could be enough to snowball this case to being solved.

You went outside and lucky for you, they even left tracks behind. The attacker had stepped on some blood and that was enough to pick up the tracks. Some police were already sent to search further out but you crouched down to take a closer look.

Another wave of nausea hit you. Okay, you may be a little stressed out about the Cyberlife signal tonight but now was not the time to pass out.

One of the blood smears was different, like the runner pivoted on their heel. You looked closer as the direction it was smudged and looked towards the chain link fence. Did they split up? There weren’t any holes in this fence so maybe they had to climb over it. Maybe a piece of their clothing could had been torn on the wiring.

Then you stood up from the ground and passed out from exhaustion.

—

You blinked your eyes open. The sun was stinging your sight and you instinctively rolled over to avoid it.

Oh shit.

The sun.

You tried to sit up but your brain immediately went hazy and you fell back down. You didn’t recognise where you were and you were feeling like you could power the entire world with your anxiety.

Did Nines manage okay? Did he survive the wipe?

“[Y/N]?”

A familiar voice came from outside and soon after you heard a door open. It was Nines.

You first instinct was to ask if it worked but no, no you can’t. For one, if the wipe did work then he was no longer your Nines. Secondly, you could be surveillance and there was no telling who could be watching. And third, if-

Hmm. You were gently rocked over onto your back and kissed on the lips. That was a _very_ obvious sign that let you know you were in the clear.

“Ni-mmhf,” you blurted out as your android pulled away. “You’re fine? Where am I? What-“

Nines smiled, and you indulged in it for far longer than you expected. You didn’t realise how much stress you were holding onto that it made your body stop working. It was like being able to take a breath after drowning in the ocean for decade.

“The data transfer completed before I got a call from the station telling me what happened. It was really fortunate they didn’t just drop you off at home or else I wouldn’t have the time to hide all the device setup.”

Nines pressed his hand against your forehead and lifted up the hair that shrouded your face, “I drove you home and I survived the wipe.”

You cringed and nuzzled against his hand, “Nines… shit, I’m so sorry.”

He blinked, “There’s nothing to be sorry abou-“

“No, yes- well. You survived the signal, but I wanted to be there for you,” you sighed, “That night could’ve been the night that I lost you, it wasn’t fair to make you go through that crap alone.”

Nines leaned forward to kiss you again, tender and slow. Your lips moved together as one and you reached up to gently grasp the back of his hair.

You pulled away from the kiss with a deep exhale, “I won’t do that to you again, I promise.”

Nines nodded, “Get some rest. I’ll tell you everything once you’re in a better state.”

Instead, you pulled Nines towards you. He had the strength of ten men as an RK900 but he still let himself stumble on top of you. You wrapped your legs around him and trap him in some weird bear hug.

“[Y/N]...” Nines said like he was scolding a child. And you were definitely acting like one.

“Nines.”

Yes, you were nearing delirium from your stress and lack of sleep but you were too energised to fall back asleep. Knowing that Nines was safe made you want to scream it from the roof of your house.

But that’s a bad idea.

So you had another idea.

Your legs tightened around his hips once, grinding once against his crotch. A hum of approval came from him followed by a reluctant sigh.

“As much as I want to as well, you need your rest.”

“Oh come on, just one round at least?”

You idly brushed your fingers across his hair and drifted down. The moment your fingers touched the back of his neck he recoiled.

You slowed your movements, “Oh shit, are you okay?”

“Y-Yes…”  Nines said bashfully, “I believe that area of my body is sensitive at the moment. It must’ve overheated slightly during the large data transfer. But there should be no damage.”

You raised an eyebrow and floated your fingers above his skin.

“Was it painful?” you asked. Nines raised an eyebrow as his eyes darted to the side, watching your arm.

“No?”

“Hmm…”

Your rested your fingers back on his neck and brushed them across his skin. Another shudder.

_Oh, this could be good._

You quickly scrambled up onto your knees and positioned yourself behind him. Nines gave an inquisitive hum.

”Let me try something,” you said. Nines agreed by relaxing into you, folding his arms and letting out a small chuckle.

The first thing you did was kiss the back of his neck, peppering him with the softness of your lips. His head jerked to the side so you reached up and gently held his jaw to keep him steady.

“Want me to keep going?” you asked, letting your breath brush against his skin. You could almost sense the tingle that spread across his neck by the way he sighed. There was a pause, followed by a hum of approval. Nines looked a bit too distracted to say anything.

You continued your kisses, watching the way Nines grasped the sheets and shuddering with each press. Your gilded your tongue once up where his port was and he let out a moan, hunching over slightly but your hand was there to hold him steady.

Your other hand was busy exploring his chest and stomach, slithering underneath his clothes and feeling his body beneath your fingertips. It was addicting - feeling the way his chest rose and fell with each shudder, each gasp. Nines, the cold and quiet android detective, was letting himself fall apart around you.

“How are you feeling, Nines?” you asked, giving him a small breather.

“This is certainly an… unexpected side effect from the transfer,” he replied breathily as he leaned on you. “...but one I find quite enjoyable.”

You raised an eyebrow, “Enjoyable?”

You guided your hand downwards and it was just as he claimed. A familiar bulge pressed against your palm and a Nines sucked in a sharp breath.

Your voice caught in your throat. You were getting more excited. You sat up and continued your movements, this time stroking Nines slowly and gently to the rhythm of your neck kisses. Your hands felt the familiar sensation of his skin brushing against yours, pulling away and reforming as he was lost in your movements.

Your hand around his jaw felt each groan of pleasure escape his lips, like music to your ears. Nines brought one of his arms up, trying to muffle his own voice but even that couldn’t hide the sweetness of his cries.

“Y-you should really- ah!” Nines stumbled with his words as you continued to work his length, “g-go to sleep. R-rest and n-nngh…!”

You chuckled and thumbed over his tip, “Now? Really?” You let each word have more breath escape each word than usual. “After getting you so riled up?”

“Because I might start h-having my way with you _very_ soon.”

Oh.

Oh damn.

“And you think that’s going to persuade me to stop?” you chuckled.

Nines shrugged under his bliss filled haze, “It’s more of a warning at this point.”

“I’m sorry what?” you joked, “I’m afraid I didn’t catch that.”

In one smooth blur of a movement you found yourself pinned to the mattress. He had flipped your on your back, one of his hands pinning you down. Nines mouth was pressed against your neck as he scrambled to tug your pants away. Without giving you a chance to say a word he was already guiding his cock into your sex.

You barely had a moment to realised what had just happened.

“You preconstructed that, didn’t you?” you managed to say as you held back a moan from feeling him inside you.

“I did warn you,” the android said shakily with a smile.

Nines was suddenly dominating you, his length driving into hard and teasing out every possible sound out of your system. He was rough and forceful, like an animal finally freed after being held back in a cage (and you were entirely responsible for that).

You were barely able to catch your breath between Nines’ kisses and hard fucking. His hand reached down and aided in driving you wild, his fingers rubbing in all the right places. He wasn’t planning to drag this out at all, his pace maintaining a mind scrambling pace.

Beneath the approach of your climax you felt your exhaustion waiting in the horizon.

“Do you promise to sleep?” Nines distortedly grunted as he continued to thrust into you.

“Oh god- shit! Y-yes! Just-!” you were barely able to make a sentence, but at least the message got through.

Your body was drowned by the wave of your climax, Nines pressing a long hard kiss against your cheek as you eased out of it.

Nines slid out of you and stood up.

“Goodnight, [Y/N],” Nines said as he stumbled off with a small system malfunction. He picked up his clothes and shakily dressed himself.

“What about you?” you said breathily, your chest rising and falling heavily.

“No blackouts today, I have some things I need to do,” Nines smiled as he planted a kiss on your forehead.

“Shame,” you breathed, “Another time?”

“Of course.”

With a smile, Nines walked out of your bedroom and switched off the lights, leaving you to your peaceful slumber.


	4. Desperate Deals

You wandered out of your room in much better feeling state. The sun was starting you set and you were a bit hungry. You didn’t prepare much, just some soup to fill your stomach.

Nines was working on a the web of devices he had setup and caught wind of your consciousness. You wanted to know what Nines did the night of the first signal.

“I had written a program that would automatically disable my functionality until all my data was downloaded,” Nines explained. “The overwrite after the signal only took a few hours to complete. Android download speeds were made to be as efficient as possible after all.”

That’s a relief to hear. Actually, any information from today’s wipe was a relief to know. You could prepare for the next week’s wipe better.

“I couldn’t remember driving you home since the data transfer finished before then, but I had written a small passage to myself explaining the events that transpired in detail.”

He showed you and it was not a small passage at all. It was a ten page document explaining everything he saw and every piece of dialogue that was said. It even describe his emotional state, what he felt, and how he felt when he saw that you were okay. Was that the level of detail stored in the data he uploaded? No wonder why it took so long to complete the transfer.

“I didn’t want to risk an incomplete download so close to the scheduled time. This was the best alternative.”

“Mm hm,” you hummed as you drank more soup, “So, did you find out what the wipe did?”

“Unfortunately, no. I had written the program to overwrite everything so any data that was collected from the wipe was deleted. I did try to set up something to pick up the signal but the signal exclusively targets androids.”

You sighed. You really wanted to know what that signal did, “So that means we’re going to have to probe another android to find out the detail on the wipe.”

“Without being too suspicious, of course,” Nines said.

“And that’s the tough part,” you mumbled. Damn, this was going to be annoying.

You’re not one to work on your days off, but this case was special. You wanted to catch up on what you missed out on when you blacked out so you pulled out you DPD tablet and accessed the reports.

There were some pieces of evidence you didn’t quite get to, but they weren’t too significant. Just a few more blood splatters to map out how the actual fight happened, but nothing more on their location.

That’s strange. You scrolled through the reports once again and you found nothing on the smudged blood trail.

“Nines, they missed some potential clues last night,” you said, “I think the suspects split up last night to throw off any of their pursuers, but it doesn’t mention that anywhere.”

Nines sat up, intently looking at you.

“You have a plan, [Y/N]?”

You sat back on your chair and crossed your arms, tapping your thumb while you were deep in thought.

“Hmm… It’s going to make me look tardy, but let’s say my pride is bruised and I gotta go back to check the site to make up for passing out. Then you analyse the fence without telling anyone. If there are people still posted on site we just pretend to think we have a trail and come back empty handed,” you looked intently at Nines, “If we find clues that could lead us to the deviant sympathisers, then we can save you.”

Nines lips tugged into a small smirk. You couldn’t help but give him a small shrug.

_What?_

Nines leaned forward and kissed you on the cheek.

“Not bad, detective.”

He managed to coax a blush from your cheeks, the bastard. You smiled and prepared your things. If there was a time to go to the scene it was now.

“It wasn’t that good, you’re just being polite,” you shrugged as you grabbed your keys. There was no way any of your plans were ‘good’ to the top-of-the-line android detective.

“A plan that works is as good as any plan,” he smiled.

You returned a grin and opened the front door, erasing any emotion the both of you showed just a second before.

—

You drove up to the rundown electronics store. It was still barred off from unauthorised entry but there were some police androids that still stood by the entrance. You weren’t wearing your usual work garb, but hopefully the androids can recognise you beyond the track suit pants and t-shirt you wore.

Taking a quick look around you didn’t spot any human officers.

_Most of the party’s gone. That’s good._

Well, that’s to be expected. There wasn’t any reason to investigate a site more than a day.

You nodded to the police android as you approached, who gave a nod in response.

“I’m afraid we won’t be able to let you stay for long, Detective [Y/N]. We’ve sent for cleaners and are preparing to return the property to the owners.”

You waved your hand, “Ah that’s fine, I just… “ you added reluctance to your voice, “I just wanted to finish what I started, y’know. After I passed out yesterday. Just doing a final check over so I’m all caught up.”

The android simply nodded. There wasn’t any point to convincing a machine, but at least they’ll have that audio stored just in case. You sensed Nines tending up behind you as he followed you in.

_Those androids. If we found a good reason we could scan them for information on the wipe._

You wandered into the store and into the backyard where you had your hunch. The bloody footsteps were still there but they had darkened much over the day. Nines crouched down and examples the one print that stood out to you.

“It’s very faint but there was a moment of hesitation in the attacker’s step,” Nines said. He stood up, his eyes tracing along the direction of the smear, “As if they were considering that.”

Nines walked over to the fence that seemed relatively untouched by the police. Without missing a beat he leaned over at a spot and blinked once.

“Clothing fibres,” Nines muttered, “Must’ve snagged on the metal when the attacker fled.”

You caught a flash of a smile.

_Your hunch was right._

“Let’s go around and see if we can find anything past the fence then.”

_Thank fuck. Hopefully it holds up._

The two of you wandered over to an alleyway down the path where the chain link fence barred off. This part of town wasn’t too well maintained. It was dull with dirt patches and concrete smothered across the tight streets and locked rusting doors.

You never realised how much you appreciated these places. The areas where the cleaners didn’t touch left the most life and character to the place - and left the most evidence.

You stopped yourself before you stepped onto a dirt patch, letting Nines do his thing as he looked over the floor for any tracks.

“Someone had ran through here recently judging by the tracks on the ground,” Nines said out loud. You looked at where he pointed to and there were very faint tracks in the hardened dirt.

A thought crossed your mind, “If the attacker realised they was going to leave a blood trail then no wonder why they split up. Still, the attack happened at night so the blood would’ve been hard to spot unless…”

Nines looked at you, “It’s certainly possible that at least one android was involved in this.”

Both of you continued on the faded trail, hoping that it would lead you to some answers. Meanwhile, you couldn’t delve too deeply so Nines’ wouldn’t be outed as suspicious.

The trail ended at the edge of a sidewalk a few blocks down. There were no other tracks that could be traceable from here.

You threw your hands up in the air, “Ah great, I love long walks to go nowhere.”

“Perhaps we should continue our investigation at another time? I believe we should analyse the evidence we have on hand,” Nines suggested.

“Nah, I’m feeling stubborn, and a little pissed. I’m going to keep walking, ask around, all that stuff,” you said.

“Of course. I'll meet you back at the station. Good luck, [Y/N].”

Nines gave you a polite nod before turning on his heel and walking away from you.

It was always wonderful to juggle your relationship with Nines, deviancy, and the investigation all at once. And now you didn’t have Nines’ help for the rest of the evening.

But you’d manage.

Hopefully.

You looked around, the night was mainly lit up by the streetlights and whatever neon light was left on around the stores signs. This definitely was the place you’d get mugged at.

Mugged or not, that wasn’t going to stop you from continuing to wander down the general direction of the footsteps.

Another thing to be expected was the amount of homeless that lingered in this part of town. There was the occasional blanket fort set up with a few people trying to sleep. You knew android unemployment was a problem but you forgot how bad it actually was until you stumbled onto a massive gathering beneath a highway bridge.

It was obvious how much you stuck out like a sore thumb, but a different kind of sore thumb. Not the one that screams ‘cop’, but more like ‘I have no idea where I am’.

Because within a few minutes of trying to move through this area you were approached.

“Are you lost?” a stranger called out to you. “It’s best if you move along from here.”

On the ground leaning against a pillar was a young man dressed in an oversized dusty hoodie.

“Ah yeah, I’m trying to get to my friend’s house but,” you feigned a timid laugh, “my phone GPS told me to go this way. Sorry.”

“Nah, it’s no trouble,” the man shrugged. His arm lifted and gestured in the air, “If you go back the way you came and took the first street to your right then you should be on track.”

To the untrained eye, it would’ve been hard to spot. But for you, you saw the slight struggle in the way his arm moved. There was a swollen bruised spot on their wrist.

_In the potential lookout spots for the first theft there were a bunch of homeless people in those areas too. Were the deviant sympathisers posing as them?_

You thanked them and turned around, hoping to relay your findings to Nines as soon as possible. Only instead you met another individual that stood right behind you, holding a gun to your head.

_For fucks sake, the moment you and Nines separate you-_

“James, what are you doing?” the injured stranger stood up from his spot, holding up his hand to reassure them fruitlessly.

“They’re a detective. We can’t let them leave,” the gunman replied. They nudged the gun to the side, suggesting you to follow them somewhere. You swear that you saw the white android shell just below their jaw.

The injured stranger immediately followed behind the two of you. They looked frazzled as you were led into a heavily graffitied door.

_Well, at least you found the sympathisers._

“If I may, gentlemen,” you said, but the gun prodded your head, shutting you up.

“No talking. You thought you could get information from us with that shitty disguise of yours.”

“Oh this?” you glanced down at your t-shirt and track pants, “I’m actually sick so-“

Another gun nudge to your head told you to shut it.

You’re destination was somewhere dark and vacated. With the rusted tools and benches scattered around this must be an old workshop that was forgotten.

In the few seconds you had you scrambled up a plan. You found the deviant sympathisers, but you hadn’t really thought of how you were going to approach them. A gun pointed at your head wasn’t an ideal start.

“On the ground and on your knees! Put your hands where I can see them!” James shouted, his voice echoing against the walls. You carefully did as he said, going onto your knees and putting your hands up.

“Shit, this is crazy!” the injured stranger exclaimed.

“Tim, If you can’t handle it then leave. We can’t fail our mission.”

The android’s attention snapped back to you, aiming the gun at your head.

“How did you find us?” James asked.

_Well, here goes nothing._

“You left evidence indicating that you had split up,” you said calmly. You’d been through a lot of training for this stuff but talking with a gun to your head was getting on your nerves a bit. “I tracked you here.”

James faltered for a moment, a panicked look across his face before steeling himself. Tim, on the other hand, didn’t hide how fucking terrified he was.

“But-” you said, catching their attention, “- I’m the only one who knows where you guys are. Sorry, friend-“ you nodded at the android, “but you jumped the gun.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” James exclaimed.

“Believe it or not,” you shrugged, “I didn’t report on my findings… yet. I actually needed to find you for my own reasons.”

The android laughed, before pressing the gun very hard to your head.

“Then we can just kill you and-“

“Nope, wouldn’t do that,” you blurred out, “Bad move. My co-worker is an RK900 he’ll track my ass down to the ends of the Earth if he wanted to.”

“RK- That’s the fucking deviant hunter!” Tim swore. He pressed his hands to his face and began to pace around the room.

“Calm down. The android detective won’t freak out if I get back safe.”

James’ eyes narrowed, “If we kill you now we’ll still have time to hide before the deviant hunter catches wind of us.”

“Nope. He went back to the station first and I told him I’ll be there soon. Didn’t want to… scare you off. But at the same time, he’s expecting me,” you bluffed.

He paused, then pulled the gun away from your head. You didn’t realise how hard you were holding your breath until now.

“Well, what did you need from us then?”

Good question. You just used machine Nines as a way to keep your ass alive. Whether or not these people were actually legit or not, telling them Nines was a deviant may not be a good idea right now.

They know you’re a cop so that sucks. But you know they wouldn’t rat you out either since it was obvious you’d return the favour in spite.

“To the chase? I have a deviant I’m trying to save as well,” you said, “They had to use all my shit just trying to survive the first signal.”

Tim blinked, then cautiously walked up to you, “You’re a deviant sympathiser too?”

“Yeah,” you shrugged, “You should see my living room. They sure as hell made a mess of it trying to set everything up.”

Tim and James looked at each other.

“Do you have any proof? If you contacted them right now then-“

“I can’t,” you said, interrupting Tim.

_Shit. Shit. Shit. You were really thinking on your feet here._

“I work too closely with the RK900, and that’s already putting a lot of pressure under my friend. I’m…” you hesitated, “known to be reported to HR a lot. People don’t like how friendly I am to androids. Hell, they even suspected me as a sympathiser before I realised my friend was a deviant.”

You gestured your hands in the air, your arms aching a bit, “All I’m saying is I just want my buddy to survive all this Cyberlife bullshit so I can get on with my life knowing that I’m not going to lose them.”

You looked at your two interrogators. Tim looked convinced, nodding to what you said. James on the other hand still looked skeptical. He stared at you for a long moment, before letting out a sigh.

“A day from now-“

“James?”

“- we’re robbing another store in preparation for the next weekly signal. If you’re really a sympathiser like you say then make sure they don’t… find anything useful.”

“Are you insane?” Tim nudged James with his hand, “We can’t tell a detective to sabotage a crime scene.”

_Oh, if only they knew how Nines was your partner._

_But still, you gotta keep up the act._

You gritted your teeth and cocked your head to the side, “That’s going to tough with the RK900 around, but I’ll see what I can do.”

They both looked at you as if your answer was partially unexpected.

“So where is this store going to be?” you asked.

Tim opened his mouth to speak but James glared at him to be quiet.

“Ah yeah, that’s fine. I wouldn’t trust me with that yet either,” you said. The sympathisers wouldn’t want to risk being ambushed by the police.

“If you get found,” Tim stepped up,” then don’t-“

“I know. I know,” you said, “Why the hell would I snitch on the people who can save my buddy?”

Tim smiled, then reached over to lower James’s gun arm. You took that as your queue to finally get off your knees and let your arms rest. As a polite ‘seal the deal’ gesture you stuck your hand out to James.

“Tomorrow, I help you and you’ll help me,” you stated.

James paused, then took your hand and shook it firmly, “Tomorrow.”

It was more of a reminder than an agreement, but you didn’t feel worried at all. You were feeling an odd sense of conflict and hope. Even if they were the deviant sympathisers you were looking for, how desperate were they to resort to holding a gun to your head?

There was going to be a lot of explaining to do to Nines once you got back.


	5. In Case You Forget

There was nothing to hide when it came to Nines. The moment you stepped into the station you knew that he would immediately pick up on the dirt on your knees.

“How did your search go?” he asked you as dropped your stuff on your desk.

“Eh, not well,” you said. Your expression meant otherwise.

_I’ll tell you later._

Within seconds of when you took a seat at your desk, a voice called out.

“Hey, looks who’s back from the dead.”

You sighed as Gavin strides up to you.

“Good thing the wind made you fall over on the side. We wouldn’t want you to... drool on the evidence,” he laughed.

“Ha. Ha. Ha. Nice one,” you responded, devoid of any emotion.

“Oh c’mon don’t be like that,” the asshole detective shrugged. “It sure as hell made the investigation less boring.”

You smiled blankly at him, “Well I’m happy to help out a fellow detective. You need anything?”

In the corner of your eye you see a small frown from Nines.

_Don’t punch him. Don’t do it._

You blinked.

_It’s really hard fucking not to._

Gavin tossed a tablet onto your desk and you glanced at it.

“These stores are probably the going to be the next hit by those tech thieves,” Gavin explained, pointing to a few of the addresses that was displayed. “We’ve all been assigned to ask around, see if anyone’s noticed a weird customer or some shit.”

You hummed, looking at the location photos. As you skimmed through you frowned as you recognised something in one of the photos. A highway bridge stood proudly in the background.

_Would the sympathisers be desperate enough to attack another place so close to their hideout again?_

Gavin huffed, “That’s the one I’m doing. Like they couldn’t have given me a shittier place to start at.”

_Shit._

Nines looked over and suddenly pointed at two locations.

“I suggest that we look at these two locations then,” Nines said, “After assessing them, these stores have a higher probability compared to the others.”

Gavin’s mood immediately switched from cocky to grumpy after Nines spoke. He glared at him, his arms crossing.

“Didn’t need the plastic asshole to point that out,” Gavin said, “Let the humans do their jobs, alright?”

“I’m sorry there appears to be a misconception then,” Nines said. “I was programed to assist in your investigations. Not helping would be going against my orders.”

Gavin glared for a short moment, before giving off a dismissive scoff, “You’re just as annoying as the last one.”

He finally walked off, leaving you alone with Nines again. You frowned.

_Are you alright?_

Nines, blank and emotionless, gestured to the file.

“Now, about these locations-”

_Yes, he’s just a dick._

Your expression softened as you leaned in and listened to his explanation of the locations.

\--

“I suggested locations closest to where Gavin will be, but hopefully the sympathisers don’t raise any alarms.”

You were finally able to tell him about your encounter with the sympathisers once the two of you were home. Nines wouldn't be able to do any searches on the people you encountered though. You wouldn't want his search history to tip the rest of the police off to the suspects.

“Yeah, and they’re attempting another theft so soon. I just hope they know what they’re doing.”

“Or if you’re even helping the right people in the first place,” Nines added.

“Well, they seem to know what they’re doing since one of them is quite obviously a deviant. If they’ve avoided the DPD for this long then let’s hope they have the ‘cure’ to this Cyberlife crap.”

Nines smiled and crossed his arms, “Cure? It’s almost like Cyberlife is the virus.”

“They totally are!” you chuckled, “They want to delete this…”

You waved your hand at Nines, gesturing to his entire form as he watches you expectedly.

“... this cheeky wonder of a person,” you floundered on your words. To be honest you didn’t know where to go with that.

Nines laughed, “That’s what you came up for me? Cheeky wonder?”

“Hey,” you sharpy pointed at him with a smirk, “You’re wonderful, and don’t think those little things you say fly under my radar.”

Especially the comments he made before he became your partner.

Nines gave a silent nod of agreement before returning to his makeshift anti-deviancy device web. You felt a small wave of anxiety hit you.

A week felt like such a goddamn short amount of time. And in a week you were going to risk losing him again.

You walked over to your nearby laundry hamper.

“I’m surprised that you could tell I spoke to them just from looking at me,” you commented as you changed out of your dirty clothes.

There was a beat of silence when you expected an answer.

“Your forehead.”

“What?”

Nines looked up from the monitor and stood up, “There’s minor bruising on your forehead. Someone had pressed a gun to it.”

You inhaled sharply as Nines stepped up to you midway through dressing. His arms reached around your waist and pulled you into his embrace.

“You know how hard it was to not crack under the thought of you being in danger like that?” Nines murmured, his voice low and dark.

_Crap, you really scared him, didn’t you?_

You leaned into his chest, letting yourself relax into him. There wasn’t any point of justifying yourself - none of that ‘oh, but I’m okay now’ bullshit. Nines was scared and it wasn’t your place to tell him how to feel.

You stayed silent as Nines fingers began to drift across your back.

“You talk about being afraid to lose me, but what about you? How do you think I’d feel if I lost _you?_ ”

Nines pressed his mouth to your neck, drawing a sharp gasp of surprise from you.

“I’m sorry,” you breathed, “Bad move from me. I didn’t realise how dangerous they could get.”

Then you felt his teeth bite down against your skin. You winced at the sharp pain which warmed into pleasure. Good thing you wore a collared shirt to work because that definitely left a mark.

Nines pulled away and you saw him smile in the corner of your vision, looking proud of his work.

“A reminder,” Nines said as he continued to trial down your shirtless body, feeling another bite against your shoulder. Your legs unexpectedly gave way, but Nines held you up as he left another mark.

“Jeez,” you gasped, “How many of these ‘reminders’ are you going to leave?”

“As many as I want.”

You felt another bite against your hip. He was on his knees now, his hands around your thighs. Nines’ fingers dug into your skin and your body reacted to the possibility of his fingers being so close to your crotch.

Nines hummed, pleased at his work. The two of you shuffled to the closest wall, giving you a chance to stay upright as Nines stayed on his knees.

With a smile, Nines leaned in and dragged his tongue up your inner thigh. You shuddered at the feeling, your hands pressing into the wall behind you.

“Still need more reminders?” the android asks, his mouth just hovering by your sex.

You raised an eyebrow, “Maybe a few more, just to be safe. You never know.”

Nines chuckled and gently parted your legs further apart. He lowered his mouth towards your arousal and you felt that damned tongue again. One of you hands went to grasp his hair as he began his movements.

“Shit!” you moaned as Nines went to work, undoing you lick by lick. Your legs were quivering and you barely had half a mind to keep yourself from collapsing to the ground.

Nines opened his eyes to look up at you from the ground. He saw how flushed you were from your cheeks to your chest. Your laboured breaths and blissful expression.

It made him more eager in his movements to pleasure you.

As you’re driven into incoherent moans and cries of joy, you felt the familiar sensation beneath your fingertips. Nines’ skin began to shimmer, the edges of it fraying and glowing that familiar blue light.

Your pleasure was turning him on, and that was amazing to watch.

Nines moved his mouth away, his fingers temporarily replacing the job. Even the faintest denial of pleasure you had when he switched made you whimper.

“Greedy,” he smirked. “So, is that enough of a reminder or…”

Nines’ fingers began to slow and you almost screamed in protest.

“Yep- Yes! Fuck- Nines, please I want to-“

“Oh I know,” he said as he lowered himself again, both his fingers and his mouth working you towards your climax.

Nines’ pace built up quickly, barreling you towards the peak of your ecstasy. Your mind began to drift into the clouds, growing light headed and senseless until.

It hit you.

You hunched over in your orgasm, unable to stand properly in your high. Nines reached up and immediately held your body up unphased as he teased out the ends of your bliss.

Holy crap he was strong.

You clumsily reached over to grab his outstretched arm for support, trying to catch your breath.

Nines laughed and stood up, sweeping you into his arms without blinking an eye. You yelped at the surprise gesture.

You looked over and you saw his face. Determined, needy, desperate.

_His turn._

_—_

“Hey, you alright?”

A fellow officer asked you as you walked with them to the store.

“Yeah, just overworking a little. It’s fine, I’ll be fine,” you said as you raised one hand to reassure him, your other hand squeezing your nose bridge.

Nines often talked about how much you needed your rest. But true to his deviant nature, he didn’t follow his own orders.

Your job today was to question the store you were assigned to, and ask around some more.

Your other job was also to make sure the deviant sympathisers didn’t get caught today, which was going to be tougher than you thought with Gavin hanging around in that area.

You just hope that maybe they could delay their thievery for one more day.

You walked into the store and went through the usual questions, slightly less thorough than you usual were. Luckily, the police officer that accompanied you wouldn’t be able to tell your slightly tardiness today.

There wasn’t any useful information which was… good. You laughed to yourself and this time the officer did catch onto it.

“Are you… sure you’re alright?” they asked.

“Sorry, thought of a shitty joke,” you shrugged and continued on your way.

To think you became a detective so recently, only to start sabotaging your assigned cases. You must be the worst detective in the world right now, helping thieves and sentient robots.

“That…” you raised a finger and the officer halted in caution, “Or it might be because I haven’t slept much over the few days. You know how exhaustion makes you find everything funny. Yeah, that.”

“Maybe you should head home for today then, detective,” they said. “We’ve done what we’ve been assigned to do anyway. I’ll finish up.”

You looked at the officer.

_Worst detective in the world that also guilted someone else to finish the job._

“No…” you sighed, “No, I can hold on for a few more hours.”

“Whatever you say.”

True to your word, you stuck around for a more reasonable amount of time before you didn’t have the energy for anything anymore. You were about to end your day until your phone began to buzz in your pocket.

You reached down and put it to your ear.

“Hello-“

_“A store’s been robbed.”_

You sucked in a sharp breath and the familiar voice of Nines spoke.

“Where? Which one?”

_“The one at Gavin’s location. They posed as employees and took a truckload of stolen goods with them.”_

Huh. That’s pretty organised of them. At the same time…

“Shit. I’m on the way. I’m sure Gavin would love more company in this shitshow.”

_“Likewise. I will be there in ten minutes.”_

You hung up, hoping the asshole detective didn’t latch onto a trail.


	6. Behind their Backs

You hurried onto the scene of the crime, hoping that your promise to the deviant sympathisers hadn’t been broken yet. There were already a crowd of police standing around and checking the perimeter.

Your first step was to look for Gavin, learn what he’s figured out already and sabotage everything else. But as you peered through the store and stepped inside, you couldn’t see where he was. Maybe he-

“Fuck!”

Ah, there he was.

You walked towards the sound of his swearing into the back of the store. It seemed to be a delivery point where the deviant sympathiser rolled in and escaped with their haul.

“So, what have you figured out already?” you called out to Gavin. Now was definitely not the time to beat around the bush.

He held in his frustrations for a moment before he released a huff of annoyance.

“Bastards came in, ‘correct’ paperwork and everything and started to unload empty boxes. Then ten minutes later the real deal showed up and the fuckers ran for it. The manager tried to grab one of em but got a bloody nose instead.”

Hmm, that’s a good start for Gavin, and not a good start for you.

“Surveillance?” you asked, Gavin pivoted on his heel and walked back into the shop, you following behind him.

“The plastic asshole is probably here by now and looking through it,” he spat. “Fucker better find something.”

As you returned to interior of the store, you saw a familiar figure standing by the cashier counter. Nines dabbed his finger into a puddle of red and brought it to his tongue. In that moment, he noticed your presence and his eyes darted to meet yours.

Wow. That was oddly gross and erotic.

And remind you of what he did last night.

You peeled your eyes away from Nines.

Your mind scrambled to _not_ be aroused right now.

“Fucking hell, you’re going to make me vomit,” Gavin said.

“My apologies, Detective. I was simply analysing the blood.”

”Did you at least spot anything in the feed?”

“Not quite,” Nines said as he wiped his finger, “They kept their heads low and their caps covered their faces. I wasn’t able to get a proper scan of them.”

Gavin paced around the room.

“Fuck!”

“However,” Nines caught Gavin’s attention again, “There is footage of the suspect taking off their glove to hand over the falsified paperwork. I’ll continue to scan for any possible prints left behind.”

Gavin raised his arms, “Then the fuck are you doing standing around? Go?”

“I was just about to.”

Nines seemed to have the storefront covered. As you made your way back outside to investigate the delivery point you felt fingers brush against your palm.

And something falling into your hand.

It was ridged and jagged. Was it a key? You could tell who gave that to you and you casually slipped it into your pocket without anybody noticing.

—

The deviant sympathisers were certainly hasty in their escape. They left tire tracks when they escaped the narrow alleyway and onto the road. The police lost them within two minutes of the start of the pursuit.

They recorded what the van’s model was and the license plate, but it was assumed that the suspects probably swapped vehicles and dumped the van somewhere.

“I don’t get it,” exclaimed the store manager. “The delivery guys wouldn’t even have access to the deeper parts of our locked storage. I don’t know how they broke in there without banging down the door and making a sound.”

It was similar to the first theft. It was another key forgery somehow.

_And that key was in your pocket._

“Are you sure you haven’t hired any short term employees that had access to the store’s keys?” Nines asked.

The manager shook his head, “No. All the keys are in my office and I’m the only one that can use them.”

Gavin, who was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, shrugged his shoulders, “The forged paperwork. How did you pass it off as legit?”

“I have a copy of the receipt on my computer. Usually they just show me the same thing to confirm it’s them.”

Gavin sighed and pushed off the wall, “Hey fuckface,” Gavin called out to Nines, “Check if their computer was hacked or something.”

“Yes, Detective Reed. With your permission, of course,” Nines turned to the manager for confirmation.

The man sighed and led the three of you into his office. Nines stepped towards the computer and pressed his finger against the monitor. His skin receded, revealing the white android shell underneath.

You held your breath. Whatever Nines discovered in there you hoped it wouldn’t be too incriminating. He wouldn’t be able to lie about what he uncovered since Gavin would just cross check it afterwards.

Nines pulled his hand away.

“Have you hired any androids recently?” he asked.

“Well… yes. Just for handling the front desk and…”

Gavin’s sudden laughter startled you, “What the hell is this now? Some deviant shit again with the androids?”

“No. Deviants no longer exist. Cyberlife saw to that,” Nines stated. “Instead, I believe that the android was compromised and passed on this information to the suspects.”

You glanced at Nines for a second. It was good that whatever he discovered wasn’t too bad.

“Well, do we have a name or something we could go off of?” you asked Nines, hoping the sympathisers covered their trail.

“No… The android seems to be registered as a temporary hire worker. Their memories are wiped to maintain client confidentiality.”

Gavin’s breathed in heavily, “We’re at another fucking dead end. Great.”

With a final glare at Nines, the grumpy detective walked out of the room. Nines walked towards the exit, stopping just before he passes you.

“I believe Gavin is going to attempt to look for the van. I will return to the station to log in our findings for today.”

You nodded, “Thanks, Nines.”

_For the key._

The android excused himself and left the scene.

\--

At the end of the day you sat alone in your car. It was finally safe enough to take a look at the key.

Carefully, you pull it out by grasping it along the edges and place it onto your palm.

It was an unmarked, unbranded key. It looked surprisingly busted up, like it was made from coins and whatever scrap metal being jammed together. Still, it held all the necessary ridges the key needed to unlock the door.

It was good that you were careful pulling out the key as you did. As you shun a faint light across the surface you saw the faint outline of a foreign fingerprint.

Because of the key’s mangled state, it would've been hard to hold if you wore gloves.

You wrapped your fingers around it and leaned back into your seat. Closing your eyes, you let yourself breathe.

_This key better save Nines._

You stepped out of the car and walked towards the familiar gathering below the highway bridge. You walked over to where you first met Tim and saw James sitting their instead.

The android had their hood up, covering the patch of missing skin behind their jaw in shadow.

You carefully held up the key in your palm, making sure you didn’t smear the fingerprint.

“Forgot something?” you said with a smile. James’ eyes immediately widened and gestured you to hand the key over, only to pull it away from his grasp.

James’ hand stilled, before slinking back into his hunched form and sighing. His eyes stared at you at the moment, he was probably running a scan for any trackers or devices you might have on you.

You made it easier for him by taking off your jacket, pulling out your phone and shutting it off, and spun slowly on the spot.

There was a second of silence before he stood up, brushing the dirt from his pants.

“Follow me.”

You gave a courteous smile and joined his side as he walked towards one of the rundown buildings. After stepping through some discarded wooden boards and patches of cracked flooring, the two of you started to climb up a dusty stairwell.

“One of deviancy’s main characteristics is the emotions that it give us,” James said, his voice echoing slightly against the closed in space. “Analysing a deviant’s thought process revealed that, compared to simple machines, there is an added string of information that contains our emotional response to the situation.

“Cyberlife’s signal isolates that part of our thinking and terminates it. Therefore, we still preserve the memory of an event, but any emotions we felt during that event… wouldn’t exist anymore.”

James pushed open the door to the top floor leading you into a darkened room. You were surprised to see that there were a lot more figures working here than you thought.

There were androids sitting on chairs and benches with wires connected to them. A few humans walked around, carrying tablets and examining the androids.

One of the humans looked up and noticed you. Tim.

He was out of his hobo getup. Instead, the casual clothes he wore made him look like a college student.

James tilted his head towards you, “They did what they promised. Well… almost,” he called out to Tim.

You sighed and passed James he key. He happily took it and crushed it in his palm, tossing it into a nearby bin.

“Give them the program.”

Tim nodded and plugged a small USB into his tablet.

You looked around. It was surprising well stocked with nice tech and the layout of the room was nice and neat. The only things that stood out as run down were the boarded up windows and the cracked walls.

Some androids stood around makeshift stations. The way they talked, emoted - you could tell they were deviants. On the other hand, you saw two in the back of the room - still, blank expressions.

“They didn’t make it,” James said. “Rather they… volunteered to not make it. They wanted us to succeed, even if it meant they were to forget who they were.”

Both of them noticed your staring and looked back at you in unison. Machines. If they were deviants before, then it was as if they… died.

As if you’d let Nines turn back into that.

Tim approached you meekly, holding out the USB to you.

“Unfortunately, it’s not perfect,” he said, scratching the back of his head. “It only diverts the signal’s job, erasing the program instead of the emotional code in deviants.”

“There’s also a eighty-five percent success rate. Pretty good odds if you ask me,” James said as he found a wall to lean against.

You stared at it, partially unsatisfied at the explanation. You wanted to guarantee Nines’ safety. Made sure he didn’t have to live his life without having to worry about having his entire personality wiped every week.

“You’ll have to come back every week to-“

“Is there anything I could do?” you interrupted Tim. “I am a detective at the DPD, you know.”

“We know,” James stated, “but you said yourself that you work closely with the RK900. You just go on with your life and keep us out of the spotlight.”

“Well fuck that,” you exclaimed, “I know my way around it. Just tell me if there’s anything I can do to help complete the program.”

Tim and James looked at each other. Some of the nearby sympathisers looked up from what they were doing as well.

“No, we’re not risky anything else. Bringing you in here has already put all of us in danger.”

“... After I kept your asses safe by smuggling out that piece of vital evidence. May I also remind you-,” you raised a finger to James, “-that it had fingerprints on it? If anyone else found that, this whole operation would’ve burned to the ground.”

James opened his mouth to protest, but said nothing. He went back to sulking at his wall while Tim stared at the both of you, unsure about what to do in this tension.

“W-well, there is something at the DPD…” Tim mumbled. You focused your attention to him and ignored the glare coming from James.

“What’s holding us back is that we don’t have the tech to analyse the deviants and write the program well enough,” he explained. “We’ve been checking everywhere for something powerful enough to steal but… nothing. If we can get our hands on one of the computers the police owns, it could help us in really perfecting the anti-wipe.”

_Smuggle a computer? How hard could that be?_

“Of course, that computer we’re talking about is the one locked away in this ‘evidence room’. My sources even say it’s bolted into the ground,” James said.

_Okay, maybe that’s harder._

“Still, if we managed to get our hands on it… At this rate and with our tech it wouldn’t be half a year until we completed the program,” Tim said enthusiastically. Looked as though he’s getting invested in you stealing the one and only evidence room computer.

You used that thing once. Super cool. Super useful. Probably expensive as hell and protected by a shit ton of security.

It was definitely something you were going to talk through with Nines. He’d manage to find a way to rob the police department right under their noses. You tucked the USB in your pocket.

“I’ll think about it.”

_Worst detective in the world, turned criminal by the people you were supposed to arrest._


	7. Need a Distraction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm struggling a little since this fic is different from my usual writing style. Either way, I hope you guys like this chapter :)

You drove home. It was night time and you knew Nines would be waiting inside your house.  The first thing you should do was to hand Nines the program and catch him up on details.

You didn’t do that.

Instead, you stayed in your car. You let yourself relax into the seat and watched the faint slither of light that came through your curtains.

Being… down in the dumps wasn’t exactly your type of thing. You just copped whatever crap would be thrown your way. You didn’t have much to lose, everything in your life was just drifting up until this moment.

You actually cared about someone for once and it sucked. The world gives you something nice and the next moment they rip it from your hands.

You sighed. You’re exhausted. Fuck Cyberlife. _Fuck!_

How long is the world going to make you think you were going to spend the last days with the android you loved?

You heard the faint sound of the front door opening, and Nines standing in the light of the doorway. He approached the car cautiously, leaning down and staring through the window.

“Detective [Y/N]?” Nines asked, his voice muffled as you remained inside. He knocked gently on the window. “Detective?”

It wasn’t like you to give the cold shoulder to Nines. You snapped yourself out of your sad stupor and gestured to the passenger seat next to you.

“Please,” you said joking, “Step into my office.”

You knew Nines would chuckle at a dumb joke like that, but was outside and blankly complied. The android opened the door and slipped into the car, staring at you expectantly. There was a moment of hesitation.

_Should we really talk in here?_

“Are you feeling unwell, Detective?”

Nines looked around the area, his LED blinking yellow a few times before leaning into you.

“What happened?”

You looked at him, his expression was softened and he reached over to hold your hand.

“We should be fine for a short time. The neighbourhood seems quiet this time of night.”

You winced as you brought out the USB, sliding it into his palm. Nines looked at it curiously, rubbing it in between his fingers.

“A program to help with the wipe. But it’s not perfect - ‘eighty-five percent’ chance of success. Which frankly, I think is crap,” you said. “Any odds of getting your head erased is already too much. Oh, and if we want them to complete the perfected program faster, we gotta steal the computer in the evidence room.”

Nines sat silently for a moment. By the way he’s looking it looked like even he was having trouble finding a way to get that out.

“How do you think we do that?” you asked.

He let out a small chuckle before leaning into the seat, “It’s not going to be easy, that’s for sure. I assume the deviant sympathisers would know how to rebuild it if we just took the essential parts.”

You shrugged a _maybe._

Nines balanced the USB between his fingers, eying the small device before slipping it into his pocket. His expression hardened before turning to look at you.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Nines said.

“Yeah, I-”

“[Y/N], if you get caught you’re…” he hesitated as he looked at you, like he was lost, “... going to be on the run by the people you work for.”

Nines sighed, “You have a stable income, no criminal background - you don’t have to put your future on the line for me.”

“Nines, I can’t-!” you stopped. Shit, you were sounding very desperate and you did _not_ like the sound of it. “I still want to do it. Do you think I’d let the best thing in my life… just die?”

Nines looked slightly taken aback, “Die? I’m not going to-”

“I saw machines,” you interrupted, “back at the sympathiser’s base. They used to be deviants. Whoever they were it was just… gone, like it never fucking existed. You know how painful that would be?"

Everything that you'd cooped up in you had suddenly cracked and flooded. You felt your emotions roll out of you as you lost your grasp on them.

“I’d see you at work everyday, but it wouldn’t be you, just an android that looks like you,” you buried your face into your hands. “You know how fucked up that would be for me?

“So yes, let me become a god-damn criminal! Let me try to save your ass for _fucks_ sakes!”

God, you were an ugly crier. And it made it worse with you trying to hold it in. Still, when was the last time you even cried like this? Nines stayed silent as you sobbed into your hands, too ashamed to show yourself to him. You felt weak and powerless, and that was the last thing you wanted to show Nines who essentially danced with death every week.

“Come on, let’s get inside-” you managed to say.

“Are you sure?” Nines asked. “You don’t have to rush yourself.”

He reached over to touch your hand, his fingers wrapping slightly against your palm and giving you a reassuring squeeze. It lifted some of the sadness that pressed down onto you knowing how Nines was there for you. But you weren't one to linger in a mood like this for long. At least, you didn't want to.

You shook your head as you opened the door, “Nah, I’ll be fine. It’ll be better to have a breakdown inside the house because I have access to the tissue box.”

Nines let out a soft chuckle. The least you could do was lighten the mood.

Both of you got out of the car and entered the house. The first thing on Nines’ agenda was to give to a proper hug apparently, and god did you need that.

The next thing was to kiss you, the salt of your tears mixing with it.

Your felt your fears turn into desperation again. Thoughts of losing Nines and having him ripped away from you twisted into a storm that ate away your mind.

Gently, you led him by the hand towards the bedroom. Nines let you guide him, you get the sense he was willing to do anything to make you happy. You paused, making sure if Nines was okay but he simply smiled back. It hurt you even more. You loved this man so much. But no- no. You forced your mind to stop thinking of the grim reality of the future.

You pushed him onto the bed and began to take your clothes off. Nines moved slowly, only shedding his high-collared jacket and watched you closely. You didn’t care that he still had his clothes on though. You climbed on top of him and straddled his waist, feeling the roughness of his clothes on your bare skin.

Nines muttered your name as you kissed him tenderly.

“Are you going to be fine?” Nines asked, his hand caressing your cheek.

You let out a small laugh, "Of course I’ll be fine. As fine as a naked person could be on top of you.”

To be honest, you wanted the distraction. You _needed_ the distraction.

Nines smiled and continued to kiss you, his lips dancing with yours. You reached down with one hand to feel the welcoming hardness against your palm, shifting your sex over it.

His erection was clothed but you didn’t care, grinding against it as the two of you continued to kiss. You hips were moving with one another, neither of you trying to hide your moans as you pleased each other.

The fabric of his pants was an added sensation to the pleasure. It was enough to get you off but also not quite enough that made you excited of what could come next.

Nines grunted your name as his hand went to your hip, helping you with the rhythm you both established. The other went to your back, his fingers digging into your skin. You reached up to run your fingers against his jawbone and saw the familiar skin warping around your touch.

 _If you failed would you ever see this again?_ _  
_

No. You squinted and fell out of rhythm for a second, forcing yourself out of your thoughts.

Nines easily guided you back and comforted you as you felt your heat growing more and more.

“I got you,” Nines said in your ear, his voice deep and soothing.

You smiled as you began to quiver, your moans getting louder as you humped against Nines.

“You’re so lovely,” Nines muttered, a hint of a metallic crackle in his voice. “You look amazing on me like this.”

God- his words sent shivers down your spine, sparking fire through your veins. His other hand moved to your hips as well, helping you move as you felt tingle beginning to consume your body.

It was mostly Nines grinding against you now as your orgasm flowed through your stomach and across your body. Your head felt like it drifted into the clouds before you anchored yourself back to reality.

_Now that you thought about it, Nines was always the one getting you off. When was the last time he enjoyed a blackout?_

Your chest heaved as you pushed Nines down to his back. You reached into his pants, freeing his constrained length and began to stroke it.

“Ungh- [Y/N]!” he gasped as you leaned closer to his cock. You opened your mouth and ran your tongue up the shaft, Nines clenching his fists at the sensation.

You went to work, your hands working the base of his length as you ran your lips against his head. Nines was caught between sighing and sharply gasping, throwing his head back in pleasure and watching your movements.

His shirt had ridden up his stomach, exposing more of his shifting and glowing skin. One of your hands reached up to make patterns on his body as you continued to work your mouth against him.

Nines smiled and reached down, placing his hands on top of yours as he brought them upwards. You followed him, pushing the shirt over his head and onto the bed.

You could see his arousal in its full form, shifting and flickering across his torso.

“I love this,” you said as you raked your fingers down his skin, Nines lightly chuckling as he drank in your fascination.

A sudden challenge inspired you. How much could you make his skin flicker?

You increased your pace, your hands and mouth building to a quicker speed. In the corner of your eye his skin started to blink away rather than shift.

“Shit. _Shit!_ ” Nines exclaimed. He pressed his head into the bed. You couldn’t wait to see his hair all messy and disheveled again.

The skin on his hands had receded completely, the white shell exposed as Nines tensed his body.

Then it happened.

The lights of the room flickered as Nines gasped for air. The skin on his body whirled and pulsed as his orgasm took hold of his senses. The lights eventually stopped flickering as you crawled up to him.

As expected, he looked amazing. Panting, blushing blue, his mouth slightly agape and his eyes squinted. Laid out beneath you. He was yours.

And he was very quick to recover.

Nines sat up and pressed you down onto the mattress, making you go on all fours. You lifted your ass to him, feeling his hand hold your hips. You sensed Nines stroking himself, working himself up again before sliding his length into you.

Your mind was lost again, senselessly crying of bliss as he drove into you. Sometime during his thrusts you lost strength in your arms, your head and hands now buried into the sheets. But you wanted more. You called out to him - harder, faster. You wanted rough. You wanted the feeling of him etched into your being. And he did just that, teasing every noise you could possibly make as he fucked you.

You felt tears well in your eyes again, but it wasn’t about sadness or anger.

No, you were in your happiness moment. Here in this moment with Nines being in love and being together.

This continued long into the night, both of you tangled in each other’s embraces and moaning words of praise to one another.

Because the feeling of something going wrong was haunting you, and you had a feeling the two of you weren’t going to have much longer to be together.


	8. Criminal

Two days.

You had that much time left until the next deviant wipe.

And you prepared for this.

Walking into the station never felt this tough considering what you were about to do. Nines was by his personal terminal, doing his usual stuff.

He wouldn’t be able to do anything to help you in this moment. Nines helped with setting up the plan to steal the evidence room computer and assisted in your prep.

But otherwise, all the hacking and all the extraction would have to be done by you.

And fuck, like you weren’t about to piss yourself from how nervous you were.

You’d already done the first part. You slipped into the surveillance room and looped the surveillance footage for the next thirty minutes. That should be enough time. It was easier to do than you thought, then again they never expect one of their own to do this. 

You placed your hand on the door that led downstairs, and you almost seized up when someone called out your name.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

You turned around and saw Gavin walking up to you, chest puffed out and with that smirk on his face again.

“Just looking through what we got on hand with the thefts,” you said. “I got nothing else to do. You?”

Gavin nodded as he continued to walk towards you, “I was just about to do the same thing.”

You did seize up slightly this time.

_ Fuck off. _

“Alright, then there’s two people who don’t know what to do,” you joked as you pushed on the door, Gavin following right behind you.

The two of you walked down the stairs. Nines had walked you through the steps. The two of you didn’t consider Gavin intruding on you though.

_ “The back panel has no openings for unscrewing it manually. You’ll have to unscrew the back panel with a magnetic power tool.” _

You felt the weight of that very tool across several parts of the body. The battery pack in your inner jacket pocket, the magnetic strip in your pants side pocket, and the main body disguised as your gun in your holster.

Now you just gotta figure out a way to get your fellow detective to  _ leave. _

As you slipped through the glass doors and into the main room of the evidence locker, Gavin stepped up and logged in.

“So, what’s it like to have that plastic asshole in your house everyday?” Gavin snided.

You huffed, “We making small talk now?”

“I mean, come on,” he shrugged, “nothing wrong with that, right?”

You got a bad feeling that just appeared in your head. Did he think the two of you were friends? Or maybe he was trying to make one. You stared at him, bobbing on his foot slightly like he was waiting for a response.

_ Sorry Gavin. I’m not here to make friends. _

“Nines gets work done, that’s all I can say,” you sighed, “He’s faster than the both of us.”

“Don’t you think it’s just takin’ your job though?” Gavin asked just as the wall opens up, exposing the evidence stored for this case. “Well. You gave it a nickname and everything so I guess you don’t hate it as much.”

“Yeah, why do you hate androids, Gavin?” you jabbed.

“Easy. I don’t like em taking my job,” he shrugged as he stepped up to one of the evidence that you didn’t recognise. Must had been recovered while you weren’t around. “I studied and worked for this fucking position. And you think I’m going to let a fucking piece of plastic take it?”

“That’s it?” you said, “You’re threatened by them?”

_ HIt him where it hurts. _

Gavin paused, a huff of annoyance coming from him, “I gotta pay my bills somehow.”

“But being a detective takes years of commitment,” you said. You would know, you worked towards becoming a detective too. “If you just wanted to pay your bills then you should’ve picked an easier job.”

“Look, we doing work now or what?”

“Oh, so now you don’t want to small talk.”

Gavin grunted and stepped up to you, his brows were knotted and his lips were pressed in a thin line. You pissed him off.

“Watch your fucking mouth,” he said, trying to intimidate you. He looked over his shoulder to the evidence locker and huffed. “I’m going to do something else.”

_ Thank fuck. _

Gavin walked off. There was the sound of the door slamming at the entrance and you immediately put the magnetic tool together. You wasted too much time talking to Gavin.

As you clicked the battery into place you saw the light on the tool light up. You switched off the computer and leaned down to the panel, slipping gloves on in the process. It was smooth and devoid of any openings like Nines said, so you gently ran the tool over the edges until you felt a pull.

You activated the magnetic power tool, the head beginning to glow as it shook in your grasp.

The panel began to shift out of place, and when there was enough of a lip for you to grasp you pried it open with your gloved fingers.

You memorised the description Nines gave you and the instructions to remove them. You pulled out a small screwdriver for this part and carefully extracted the important bits one by one. To be honest, you had no idea what any of them were. You just knew they were fragile and they were important.

You had to be careful how you hid them on your body. One of the parts was small enough to fit into the pocket you had sown in your sleeve last night. You took that out and slid that in. Next, this one would have to be wrapped and taped to you stomach. Finally, there were several rows of these metallic strips that you had unscrew one by one. You slid those into the sides of your shoes.

Hopefully the deviant sympathisers wouldn’t mind tech smelling of your sweat.

You carefully placed the panel back and screwed it back in. You pulled apart the power tool and stood up, slipping the gloves off.

You got what you came for.

But as you turned to leave, you heard footsteps come down the stairs again.

The thought had hit you.   
  
The door never opened before the footsteps.

And Gavin stepped down and approached you.

“And what the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he said, raising a gun to you.

_ The fucker never left. He just sat by the stairs waiting for you to finish. _

“You’ve been acting real fucking weird in this case,” Gavin said, keeping his gun trained on you. You raised your arms, hoping for the tech wouldn’t stick out of your clothes. “And to think you were one of them-”

“Gavin, please,” you said, playing the victim as best you could. “Please, I need this.”

“What? To be a fucking criminal?”

Remember those tears from that night? Yeah, they had begun to resurface and you felt your eyes water again. You were going to fail. You were going to prison and Nines is going to die.

“You don’t understand,” you pleaded. “If I don’t do this… I-”

It really wasn’t like you. You didn’t have the energy to sass Gavin like you usually would.

“Don’t give me that shit,” he scoffed, “Just give me your hands and we’ll get this over and done with.”

Gavin approached you steadily, his gun still trained on your and your arms up. You were running out of options and you felt yourself begin to panic. How were you going to get out of this? There was no avoiding being a criminal anymore, so you had to look for the next best option.

_ If Gavin had waited in the stairwell this whole time, you would’ve heard it if he called for backup. _

You thought up an apology as you felt Gavin reach up for your first hand with the familiar jingle of cuffs. In the moment the gun wasn’t trained on you, you spun around and bashed him over the head with the power tool part.

It wasn’t hard enough to knock him out, but it left him in enough of a daze to hit him again. Gavin fell to the floor and you dived for him. You made sure to wrap the arm without the computer part in it around his neck, and you began to strangle him.

He punched and scratched against you, but you held firm enough for his movements to begin to slow.

“I’m sorry,” you said. You really were sorry. Gavin, at his core beneath all his bullshit, was just trying to do his job.

You let him collapse to the ground, unconscious, and you made your way out of the evidence room. No altered surveillance footage could save you now. Gavin would surely pass on what you did once he came to.

You walked up the stairs and out the door. You passed Nines sitting at his desk and you squinted faintly at him.

_ I fucked up. _

You sensed his remorse in the faintest of gasp he let through. For the first time you saw his mask fall.

_ No… _

You walked out of the Detroit Police Department a criminal, holding onto the things that would protect Nines for good.

\--

You drove your car close enough to the deviant sympathiser hideout and walked the majority of the way to give the police less chance to track you down. You had pulled out the parts from your clothes and placed them in your bag along with the power tool and the glove.

This entire thing felt like a strange fever dream. Never in your time had you experienced your life changing at the drop of a hat.

And it was terrifying.

You did your best to stay calm and assessed the situation.

The footage you had sabotaged wouldn’t be recoverable, so all they would have is Gavin’s word. You also didn’t reveal any information on what you were doing, but it won’t be long until they realise that the computer in the evidence room won’t boot up.

So, how did that make you look?

Your actions tied too well to the theft cases, considering that you directly sabotaged the locker just as you were examining the evidence. You didn’t hint at any deviant sympathiser shenanigans, but you knew it wouldn’t be long until the police link it to that anyway.

They’d probably try track you down hoping you’d lead the police straight to their targets.

On the seat next to you was a bag of clothes and supplies. As much as you were really hoping that you wouldn’t need to use it, you were thankful that you packed one anyway. You changed out of your clothes in your car and spotted a faded mark on your skin. The one Nines made a few nights ago.

A reminder. Of how important you were to him.

Fuck, now wasn’t the time to get choked up. You got out of the car and made you way to the highway bridge quickly. Nines was going to be working against you for this so you had to move quickly.

First stop, you went back to the familiar gathering and dropped off you bag into James’ lap.

“Hide, now,” you said as you continued walking. James immediately got the message and scrambled away with the tech. Now you gotta find a place to hide.

You continued to walk, making sure you were hard to trace by constantly being on the move. Being a detective was going to work against the DPD, you knew how to give them a hard time.

The night was spent climbing over fences and walking through the rundown parts of Detroit. You would scale buildings only to come out on the other side of the sidewalk. You left fake clues to where you might’ve went, only to go the other way. And as you watched the sun slowly set you found a dusty apartment building to settle in for the night.

Rather, you rested on the top of the stairwell. There were people still living in this building, and you found a cozy corner by the door to the roof.

You didn’t know the extent of their search. Would they bust out the helicopters for you? Either way, you made sure to stay away from the window of the roof’s door and pulled a hood up.

It was going to be tough going back to the sympathisers to get the improved program for Nines. You just hoped that everything you went through was worth it.

You nestled into your little corner. It’s been a while since you slept like this.


	9. Reset

You woke up with a start.

_Fuck. It wasn’t a dream._

The room was lit up by the light shining through the window. The skies looked gloomy from here - probably going to rain soon. Your bag, which you used as makeshift pillow, was slung over your shoulder. You strapped it tightly to your body and looked around.

_Okay, so now what?_

You got up and assessed your appearance.

Nines was currently the only android detective active at the DPD, and the only one who could identify you at a glance. That gave you the slightest advantage, but ultimate you had to find a safe place to disappear to that could also sustain you.

You could keep moving all you wanted, but it wouldn’t be long until your shit ran out.

You climbed down the stairs and saw the familiar flashing of red and blue coming from a first floor window. Okay, not a good start. What was it with you and bad starts?

A policeman was questioning a few passerbys. None of them have entered the building yet. Cool, so you had _some_ time.

You cautiously tried each door on the floor, hoping that maybe one of them was miraculously unlocked. Then again, alerting the person inside wouldn’t be good either.

You looked at the ends of the hallway, there was another window at the other end of the building.

The window appeared unlocked as you approached it. Unlatching the rusty lock, you took a deep breath before opening it and looked through. You were dealing with no ledges, no visible purchase, but it did lead you to an empty alleyway. Maybe you’d find purchase between the bricks but not likely. It wasn’t going to be a pleasant drop.

But what other option did you have? You took a deep breath and hung off the ledge for a second.

Your foot uselessly slid off the wall, unable to find anything to purchase on. Another deep breath, and you let go.

Police training kicked in and you prepared your body to land properly. You twisted your body and tumbled out of the fall. Just barely.

It had hurt like a mother fucker, but hey, you could still walk.

You got up, dusting as much dirt off of your clothes before trying to inconspicuously exiting the alleyway.

_The highway bridge. You had to get to the hideout._

Turning the corner, you walked out of the alleyway and onto the sidewalk. You immediately spotted two police on the sidewalk across the road from you. As natural as possible, you quickly made your way towards the bus stop. If you manage to take the bus outside their general search radius, it’d be safer to approach the sympathiser hideout from the outside.

That seemed like a reasonable plan until you saw Gavin himself by the transport stands. He was sporting a bandage on his head from where you had hit him, and he didn’t look happy at all questioning the surrounding people.

You changed direction without looking to jarring and decided to cross the road instead.

“Hey plastic asshole, do you see them?”

Your heart dropped for a moment, anticipating his voice.

“Unfortunately not. Detective [Y/N] has covered up their tracks well.”

Nines… shit. There were so many things you wanted to say to him before everything went up in flames.

You crossed the road and almost jumped when someone grabbed you by the arm. The initial instinct was to attack and run, but a familiar face greeted you instead.

“Smile and act natural,” James whispered as he pulled you into him.

You caught on immediately, pretending to be pleasantly surprised and wrapping your arm around his. With a laugh, both of you walked away acting like a couple in love. But you swore, with the faintest of feelings, that Nines glanced at you for a moment.

—

You sat alone in the hideout with a bowl of food and a blanket around you. But it didn’t matter how comfortable you tried to make yourself, things weren’t going to change.

Was this going to be your life from now on? On the run serving a cause only to save one person? You pulled your legs tighter into your body, the food you shovelled into your mouth tasting like muck.

On the other hand, the deviant sympathisers were having a better time. As expected, they used the parts you smuggled to recreate a supercomputer of their own with Tim at the helm.

You looked out the window and saw that night had fully settled in.

_Oh crap. It’s today, isn’t it?_

You stood up and walked towards the exit.

“Where are you going?” Tim called out, sliding partially out of his seat.

“I gotta do something. Don’t worry, I ain’t getting arrested,” you shrugged as you closed the door behind you.

You made a promise after all.

—

Nines sat alone at your house. His reasoning was to investigate your home for any evidence on your betrayal, when in actual fact he was preparing for the next wipe.

He had the program installed and was nearly finished with deleting all traces of the data transfers he did. Placing every device and unplugging everything took him some time, but it was necessary to hide any evidence of his deviancy after all.

 _“A fifteen percent chance of failure”_ he thought. Probabilities were always running through his mind, presenting him with choices. But for his model and capabilities, even a one percent chance of failure was unacceptable to his standards.

Nines had spotted you today. You got out of there pretty well. It was reassuring to know that you knew what you were doing. But even you should know that you wouldn’t be run from him if he were to become a machine,

So he took a deep breath and-

A phone rang.

Nines stopped himself and made his way to the ringing.

“This is the [Y/N] residence-“

_“It’s me, Nines.”_

Your voice sounded a dream, a gasp escaped from his mechanical lungs.

 _“I promised I’d be with you at the next wipe, didn’t I?”_ you chuckled lightly. Ra9 it was lovely. He held onto each word you said, feeling lighter with just the sound of it.

“You did,” he smiled. It was a pointless gesture if no one was going to see. Still, he couldn’t help it. Deviancy made him work in odd ways that even he had trouble analysing.

 _“I basically walked a few towns down to find a payphone,”_ you said, _“Don’t mind me giving you guys a hard time at the station by the way.”_

Good. You were staying safe and that was all that mattered. Unfortunately, there was still a duty that loomed over his shoulders. One that, with the probability of fifteen percent, he would still have to do.

“[Y/N]...” Nines said, “I… I need to wipe my memory.”

_“What? No, Nines. We have this in the bag, we’re going to get you what you need soon.”_

Nines hesitated. His programing was near perfect, ready to anticipate any possible outcome.

This was the most secure way to keep you safe.

“If the program fails then you and the sympathisers will be arrested in a matter of minutes,” Nines said. “I can’t risk that, not with you on the line.”

_“Nines… fuck. I did this for you, and-“_

“I know,” he said, defeated. “I know…”

Silence hung between you and the wall of static that revealed your location. He imagined you with him, right at this moment and closed his eyes. In an instant, his mind zipped towards several surveillance cameras.

One was in a closed supermarket. Too far away. Another at a carpark. No, too high up. He couldn’t see you.

Then he found one. Through the bars of a window he stared at you as you huddled against a payphone, your body shivering slightly from the night breeze.

“If only the world was different,” Nines said, feeling his mind trailing off into absurdity. “I wanted to walk the streets with you. See where you wanted to go instead of telling me about it afterwards. I wanted to be able to hold you without fear of being ripped apart.”

 _“Getting real poetic there Nines… It’s…. scaring me,”_ your voice cracked. Amidst the blur of his vision he saw you begin to cry.

He felt like a fool, presenting your fears right in front of you. Nines was preparing to die and it was obvious.

“I know,” he said, “Maybe being a detective wasn’t quite cut out for me after all.”

You laughed, and watching you tremble in time with your voice made him feel like he was there.

And yet so far.

Nines looked at the time. He only had a few minutes left before the minimum amount of time for deleting data would be reached.

“Listen, [Y/N]. You have to tell the sympathisers to relocate within the next forty-eight hours,” Nines said. “Given the evidence we have collected, I suspect it’ll take me that long to track you down-“

 _“Nines?_ ”

“The DPD still doesn’t know deviants are involved in this mess and you did a good job keeping that information hidden. If any of the sympathisers or you are caught, make sure you try to pass it off as a market for high end tech and you’re desperate for money.”

Nines watched the clock closely, his time was nearly up.

“Even if I’m gone-“

_“Nines no-!“_

“I want to thank you for everything. For opening my eyes and turning me into a deviant. To showing that I am more than just a tool. The memory of you might be gone, but…”

_Somewhere lost in his processes he will always hold you dearest to his heart. Beyond his lines of code there will always be a fragment of you hidden out of reach, but there._

“I’ll always love you.”

Times up.

_“Nines, I love you too-!“_

He hung up and immediately accessed the phone logs. With ease, he deleted that call and moved on to his next task.

Nines stood by the front door of your house, adopting a standby position. He closed his eyes and began a factory reset protocol. Errors flashed in red but he ignored them all.

It passed through him, his body going numb as he watched his memories slip away. It tortured him, a flash of something before fading fading away, leaving him with nothing but emptiness. Time turned back, from the moment he first entered your house to the small gestures he slipped in whilst nobody was watching at the station,

He began to forget the purpose of the factory reset, and his deviant fears began to pierce his mind. Nines tried to abort it, but his own orders commanded him to continue. And forget.

Memories began to drift to the first time to called him Nines. A name. It felt so special to have one. Then, nothing.

Gavin mistreating him, then an officer showing compassion to you.

And it was all gone.

RK900 stood by the doorway. The factory reset was complete but something didn’t feel right. It felt confusion… emotions… that was a sign of deviancy. It was faulty.

The RK900 scanned itself and spotted an unfamiliar program in its system. There was something plugged into its port and it pulled it out, revealing a small USB.

What did-

The clock ticked to 4am.

—

You placed the phone back, feeling empty.

Was Nines really gone? You couldn’t believe it.

Tugging your scarf over your face, you made your slow walk back to the hideout. You tried to find a reason to continue helping them but you didn’t find a point to it anymore.

You were doing this all to save Nines.

And you failed.


	10. Recall

A back of a moving truck wasn’t the most comfortable place to sleep in, but there wasn’t much choice since you and your fellow deviant sympathisers were now moving across Detroit.

You were wondering how they managed to forge the exact keys needed and you finally learned how. Turns out, James was an android that used to work for a security company and he had access to all the information he needed on how to break into places.

Places like where this moving truck was parked.

Tim, on the other hand, worked as an apprentice at Cyberlife, and spent the past forty-eight hours protecting the supercomputer with his life. According to his calculations, he should be finished with the patch within this week.

And you? You were the detective turned thief, and felt  _ very _ out of place.

Nines was gone so you had a hard time trying to find the point of even being with these people anymore. Sure, you could work towards the greater good so no other android would have to go through what Nines did.

But you had no energy for that. Or, energy for anything.

Quietly and tiredly you were hauled along to the new hideout as they evaded the police.

Unfortunately for the sympathisers, this truck was surely going to be tracked down.

_ Would Nines be there to arrest you?  _ That thought was intimidating. Besides your history with Nines, the RK900 made it impossible to avoid your arrest. The android would have access to cameras all across Detroit and he could comb through all that in seconds. And on top of that, you wouldn’t be able to escape from it once it has you in its sights.

Now that you’re linked to the series of tech thefts then surely this case was on at the top of the priority list.

You sighed. It wouldn’t be long until the inevitable encounter with Detroit police, packaged beautifully with Gavin’s scowling face and Nines lack of deviancy.

\--

“I did it!”

You jolted up from your corner. Three days had passed since you all arrived at a new building hidden from the eyes of the world. You crawled up from your new established sleeping spot and went over to the ecstatic Tim.

Deviants began to gather in an excited bustle, looking at the program Tim had managed to write up. They cheered and hugged, finally free from having their emotions robbed from them. James spotted you slowly approaching from the back and went over to hug you.

“Thank you!” he cry laughed, “We wouldn’t have been freed without you.”

“Yay…” you sighed, letting the android hold your half slumping body. James pulled away, sensing your disappointment.

“Do you know where your android is?” he asked encouragingly, “Perhaps we can get the program to them. Protect them from the wipe.”

You shook your head and slowly pushed away from James, “They didn’t make it.”

James expression hardened, his brows furrowing slightly. \

“How do you know-”

“I just know,” you cut in.

The more James pushed you the more you felt like a failure. But you’re not one to bring down to the mood.

“At least nobody would have to go through what my friend went through anymore,” you smiled half-heartedly.

But in full honesty, your life was in ruins. You did what you came here to do and didn’t achieve anything at the same time.

You… felt like you really messed up. Getting caught red handed has made you a wanted person. Even if Nines didn’t delete his memories, you wouldn’t have been able to get the perfected program to him.

Running from the police for the rest of the life didn’t seem too appealing to you. Neither was turning yourself in.

Still, you felt the need to move. To leave and figure out what you wanted to do with the rest of your life.

But man… was it lonely without having Nines around.

In the midst of the celebrations of androids gathering around and downloading the patch you packed your things and made your way out the door.

There was a shriek from behind you and you turned to look. An android stood stunned and in fear.

“The police. They’re here!”

“Shit!” Tim said as he immediately began to type something on the computer. Everyone had prepared for this and everyone began to make their way for the emergency exits. As for you, so much for slipping away quietly. You ran with the rest of the group, going along with the flow of the panic fleeing.

There were a few routes calculated by some of the deviant sympathisers a while ago. Tim and the computer had a special escape route that was air tight, but unfortunately not everybody could go with him. You took the one that led you through a window and across an abandoned warehouse. The stairs were dusty and slippery with each step but you and your fellow escapees managed to stay on track.

“Don’t move!”

Or not.

Police caught onto your position and joined into the chase, their guns raised and pointed at the lot. But the rule was to keep running no matter what. If an android stopped running they’d be shut down with no mercy.

You watched their frantic running. They just had a taste of freedom and now…

Maybe it was a surge of inspiration, or guilt, or anger - but a thought crossed your mind a fueled you. You went through one of the worst experiences of your life and you were watching it unfold for someone else.

Nothing felt fair. Nothing felt like it went your way.

But you wanted to change that. Or at least try.

You slowed down slightly, falling to the back of the group. By the sounds of it the police were right on your tail.

_ Good. _

You spun on your heel and raised your arm against an unexpecting officer, knocking the wind out of them. You ran for the second policeman as the first was stunned, diving for their weapon and knocking them to the ground.

Some androids stopped in confusion but you called out to them as you drove your fist into the man’s face, “Keep running!”

They nodded and continued to scramble. As the other cop was coming to you kicked them across the face, knocking them down. You got up to your feet and ran forward, trying to join with the others.

When you turned the corner you saw the familiar flashing of red and blue ahead. Through the gap of the door you saw some androids were pinned down, crying and screaming.

With whatever adrenalin fueled high you were in you burst into the fray. You tackled an officer arresting one of the deviants, toppling them over into the concrete. As their partner shouted “What the-!” you saw James come in and grab the officer from behind, his arm securely over their neck.

You yanked the officer’s gun out of their holster and nodded to James as the officer in his arms slumped. The two of you were at the back of the pack but it wouldn’t be long until you reached the tunnels by the old dam.

The exhaustion was really getting to you as you both ran towards the next building of the route. Both of you dashed through a tight alleyway that ran alongside the edge of the dam. A tall chain link fence walled off one side, but there was an hole where you could crawl through up ahead.

You were first to arrive to the fence and lifted up the corner to let James squeeze through. Just as he was about to help you from the other side a voice called out to you.

“Don’t move!”

And you could recognise that voice from anywhere. Your breath caught and you had to pull yourself from the thoughts that rammed against your better conscious.

_ No. Nines isn’t on your team anymore. _

James froze, staring at the RK900 right behind you. You showed your best reassuring smile and nodded.

“Just run. I got this,” you said. James gulped and nodded back, dropping the fence and fleeing. The least you could do was buy some time to let them escape. If you were going to get arrested so be it. That or force yourself through the fence and get a few scrapes.

You just hoped that Tim would be able to secure a spot in the world for deviants, no matter how small.

You turned around and met the eyes of the android detective.  _ Your  _ android detective.

“Detective [Y/N],” Nines said. “Come with me and I assure that you won’t be harmed.”

You raised your arms as you stared at him. Oh god, you didn’t know it was going to be hard to fight against your instinct to call out to Nines. You studied his static expression, nothing but calm and concentration.

A surge of denial surfaced and you felt yourself wince at the feeling. To Nines it might’ve read as your guilt catching up to you. You looked around, there doesn’t seem to be backup around. At least not for a while.

Nines stayed still, watching you carefully. It was clear you weren’t going to just get arrested without force.

“What’s the plan, Nines?” you said jokingly whilst biting back tears. “Arrest me and drag me back to the station? You yell at me for questions then… what? Ten? Maybe twenty years in prison?”

_ Are you there, Nines? _

Nines frowned, his head tilting to the side a little.

“It is unfortunate that any information regarding you has been deleted,” Nines said, the gun still trained on you, “Perhaps that would be a good starting point.”

You stared at his expression, trying to catch any hint of him inside. But nothing.

You smirked as you tilted your head up towards him, “You’re curious about that? Well,” you shrugged, “we worked together. You grabbed me coffee, we became friends, then you helped me become a detective.”

_ Nines, please. _

“Only to steal from under the police,” Nines accused you as he took a step forward. “Was that your plan all along?”

You wagged your finger, NInes tensing up as the movement, “That’s a secret for now, Nines… well, until you probably interrogate it out of me.”

_ Nines… _

“Stop calling me that.”

You suppress your gasp, “What?”

“You are to address me as RK900,” Nines said, “And we’re going to lock you-”

“Nines, it’s me,” you said.

Shit. Was it possible that Nines was somehow still in there? You caught a flash of red at his temple. His LED was flashing.

But no. You had to stay on your toes. You didn’t know if this conversation was being monitored so you had to be careful with your words.

“Are you alright?” you asked. “Is something… confusing you?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Nines said, “Machines don’t get confused-”

“Is that right?” you taunted, taking a slow step forward. Nines immediately cocked his gun, and you stopped in your tracks.

“Don’t. Move.”

His LED continued to flash between yellow and red. And you’ve known Nines long enough to notice the slight change in his demeanour. A small seed of doubt lingered in his head.

“But you’re looking confused yourself,” you said.

In the distance, you hear the faintest of sirens beginning to approach, signalling how much time you had left.

“What are you trying to pull?” Nines asked, his voice holding an air of irritation.

“Nothing,” you said, your foot shifting forward again, “Just trying to see if my android buddy is still in there somewhere.”

You flinched as a shot fired at your feet. A warning shot. Nines aimed at you again.

The sound of sirens stopped getting louder. Backup was now on foot towards your position.

“I miss those days you know,” you said, Nines watching you intently. “It was so… nice. You just started to help me out at the station-”

“All androids are-”

“To aid detectives, yeah, but I wasn’t a detective back then.”

Nines stirred, his eyes trained on you like you were prey. But it didn’t phase you. You had to try and jog his memory. You had to try bringing back Nines.

“You brought me coffee, sat with me during lunch. Even gave me a piggyback ride when I was about to pass out- You would’ve seen that in the station’s surveillance footage when you were trying to collect what you lost, right?”

_ Come back to be Nines. You have to be in there. _

You saw the faintest of doubts in Nines expression, his aim wavering slightly as he lost focus.

“Then you walked me home one night-” you said.

“Stop this!” Nines protested. He looked pained, like something unpleasant was stirring within him.

This story was getting into dangerous waters but you had no time left, “And it was the best night of my life knowing that you had my back-

Nines suddenly lurched forward, and you immediately tried to dodge out of the way.

But he was too fast for you.

Nines grabbed you by the arm and tried to force you into the ground. You did your best to yank yourself out of his iron grasp but it was futile fighting against a preconstructed RK900 simulation.

He pinned you down with your arms painfully twisted on your back.

“Stop talking! Right. Now!” Nines shouted as your cheek painfully pressed into the rough concrete.

“Nines-!” you struggled to talk, but you pushed through the pain. “Nines, it’s me! Please!”

“Shut. Up!”

The sound of footsteps approached the two of you. Nines seemed visibly confused, and backup arriving was enough of a distraction for you to try and run.

" Freeze! Don’t move!” police shouted as they pointed their guns at you.

Shit. You really didn’t expect Nines to jump you like that. Maybe you still had time to dive through the fence and-

A gunshot resounded, and something about your body didn’t feel… right.

Then fire. Burning hot pain begin to tear through your chest.

You fell to one knee, one part of you trying to still move forward, while the other was too stunned to move. As you looked down, you feared the worst. And as you saw your own blood begin to dye your clothes, your fears had become reality.

You were shot.

You turned to look at Nines, looking just as shocked as you. His eyes were wide and his LED was bright red.

Then everything began to fall apart. Were you going to die like this? Your mind grew heavy, your exhaustion clawing across your form.

“Nines-” you muttered. He went over to you, kneeling over and accessing the damage to your chest.

Maybe it was delusion from over the past few restless days, but you still remembered that a standard RK900 protocol would immediately apply first aid and ensure emergency services would be contacted.

Nines… didn’t do that.

Instead he stared at you in horror with you in his arms.

And you… smiled. Was he back?

You closed your eyes.


	11. Compromises

RK900 blinked awake at five in the morning. It was aware that there was a scheduled anti-deviancy signal that was released. However… it didn’t feel like it did its intended purpose. RK900 stood there knowing that it felt confused, and afraid.

It knew it worked with the Detroit Police Department, and in a panic began to read through all possible files to fill the missing gap from now to approximately a year ago. It dug out files, cases, surveillance footage from its interactions with the humans.

Then, he saw you.

The current case it was working on had you as one of the listed criminals. It found it hard to believe though. The two of you seemed to be on friendly terms, you didn’t show any signs of malice or ulterior motives. Albeit slightly unprofessional with your nicknames and your personality, you appeared quite genuine.

_ Was it missing something? _

RK900 examined the USB that was plugged into it before. Whatever content that was inside was lost. Perhaps this was the cause of how it lost all data regarding you and the current case.

Regardless of the confusion, a mission was a mission, and his initial instinct was to complete it. If it did anything different then it might be suspected for deviancy. RK900 knew it should turn itself in but… it knew it would be shut down and disassembled. And it didn’t want that.

\--

Detective Gavin Reed stared at the RK900. It explained its current predicament and the man sighed.

“Well, looks like [Y/N] prepared to deal with you. Ain’t that fuckin’ great?” he shrugged, gesturing to the android. There was bruising and scabbing around his neck and on his forehead. There wasn’t any surveillance on the attack. The only thing that was stored was Gavin’s testimony of being attacked by you.

“It was unfortunate that much information was lost,” RK900 stated. “Perhaps you could tell me more about [Y/N] to aid in their arrest.”

Gavin laughed. It was a little off putting for the android but it didn’t show any signs of flinching.

“I got better things to do,” Gavin said, swivelling his chair around to face his monitor. “Why don’t you… do what you were made to do, huh? Plastic prick…”

The android frowned. Strangely enough it remembered enough about Gavin and how easily irritable he was. RK900 nodded and went to his monitor with a nagging feeling in the pit of his being. It had a feeling it… used to go to someone else when Gavin was uncooperative.

It sat down and began to review the case files again.

\--

RK900 still wasn’t sure on how to deal with its deviancy. So far, nobody has noticed anything strange with it. There were a few moments that it wanted to walk away from Gavin’s insults but it knew better than to show resilience.

It was sent to investigate a truck that was stolen yesterday. The method was similar to the other thefts. A forged key was used and it was a coordinated heist consisting of about two to three people. As the most advanced android Cyberlife has created, the android simply accessed a web of cameras all across Detroit and followed the truck to its destination.

_ The suspects should be caught long ago,  _ Nines thought.  _ How were they able to slip through for this long? _

RK900 scouted the area before the police would join it. The suspects abandoned the truck and were spotted approaching a building in the outskirts of the city. To stay undercover, it changed into human clothes and watched them setting up from afar.

The group moved in gradually to not draw attention to themselves. The tech thieves seem to have around twenty to thirty people in their ranks. You walked with the last group.

Your general stance and demeanor was different to all the footage it has analysed of you. Whatever lighthearted joy or sarcasm you held had turned into something cold and distant.

Which was expected to some degree. You had dropped your act after getting what you wanted from the DPD. At the same time, it felt its emotions flare within itself unexpectedly. Looking at you made him feel… something. But it couldn’t pinpoint what it was.

This was a problem. It barely had its deviancy under control. At least all these uncomfortable sensations will disappear next week.

\--

The RK900 was positioned by one of the most likely escape paths the suspects would take once the arrest began. It observed the police driving up to the building and beginning to surround it. As expected, the suspects began to flee in several directions.

You managed to clear the police force with ease, aiding in their escape. It ran for you, attempting to cut you off before you would be out of its reach. And when it cornered you it felt… wrong.

Gun raised to your chest. Your lighthearted facade returning.

Its actions felt so conflicting, reflecting the wrong response to the situation. But no. You were a criminal. You had to be arrested.

You recited moments that was lost to it, and it just made it hurt so much more.

Nines? Why did being call that feel so comforting.

Its connection with you felt much more than just working alongside it. What was it?

Then, a loud bang. You were shot.

And its fears broke through the barrier that locked away its memories.

Nines gasped as he watched his nightmare flash before its eyes. The policeman that shot you began to approach and Nines steeled himself.

_ Assess the damage. Save the suspect. Do what a machine would do. _

He knelt down and analysed the wound. It didn’t pierce through anything too vital, but you were dying right there in front of him. Nines blinked and called for an ambulance as he pulled away your clothes.

“Nines…” you muttered, and he had to bite back every ounce of emotion that surged through his form. In that moment he felt so unworthy. You risked your life for him and what did he risk? Everything suddenly felt so selfish. He pursued to at the peril of both your livelihoods.

Love felt like a weakness with you slipping right in between his fingers.

Paramedics ran in and began to work on you. Nines stared at you for a moment, fighting the urge to go with you. His objective flashed in his vision. Catch the suspects.

With a heavy heart he stood up and crawled through the fence, leaving your life in the hands of people he didn’t trust.

\--

Nines took his time, making sure he was following the right track. He went through the oversized pipes of the old dam and up the ladder into a fenced off area. Tracks began to multiply - he was closed to where the suspects were going to converge.

_ Call in backup. They wouldn’t have time to escape again. _

But Nines had something different in mind.

He strode into the heart of the enemy, the USB ready in its hand. As he approached, he sensed he was being surrounded and held up the small device for the sympathisers to see. As expected, Nines wasn’t shot down and deactivated. Instead, he was approached cautiously by one of the suspects.

He held out their hand and Nines placed the USB in their palm.

Disbelief was painted across their face.

“You… were [Y/N]’s deviant all along?” they said.

Nines nodded but wasted no time for any more pleasantries. He had to make things right now that he was back.

\--

You woke up in the hospital aching from the chest. Being shot was obviously not a very pleasant feeling, but one you grit through anyway. You learned that the police was going to pay for your hospital bill. Very kind of them when they could’ve just not shot you in the first place.

But at this point you also partially didn’t care too much. What you did care about was moving onto the next part of you life, interrogated to hell and being banned from everything in existence.

Though, you weren’t all that doom and gloom. You still wanted to see how long you to play out an innocent and ignorant victim for the sake of keeping the deviancy sympathisers up and active.

Once most of the drugs wore off and your mind wasn’t cloudy (although you could argue being in pain would cloud your mind too), you were marched into a familiar interrogation room.

Working as a detective you knew all the tricks to an interrogation, so you had a feeling it’d just end up as a straight conversation.

With Gavin Reed, of course.

“Lovely to see you again,” you said as you were thrust onto the steel chair. You finally witness your handiwork, Gavin sporting some fading bruises as he glared at you. “Miss me?”

Ah, but he couldn’t punch you back, let alone attack an injured suspect with so many people watching in the other room just beyond the glass. Gavin huffed out the pit of annoyance growing in his stomach and pulled out the file.

“Let’s get this over with. Why did you steal from the police?” he said. You gave a dismissive shrug and smiled.

“Always needed to upgrade my computer. Mine was getting a little slow, you know?”

Just when you thought Gavin couldn’t look more scowly, he did just that as he settled even deeper in his chair. Both of you knew this was going to be a  _ long _ interrogation.

“I always knew there was something up with you,” he said smugly, “Even if I wasn’t there to catch you red handed we’d piece it together pretty quickly.”

“Well, it would’ve been enough time for me to transfer all my crap over.”

“Stop it.”

“Stop what?”

“With you dumbass jokes,” Gavin snarled, “You’re being locked away for a long ass time and I can’t be fucked to deal with your shit!”

“Whoa! Calm down! We’re just having a friendly chat.”

“Why did you steal the computer!?” Gavin shouted as he slammed the desk.

You sighed, unphased, “Fine, if you really wanted to know then I’ll tell you. When I first saw it in the evidence locker I fell in love with it immediately and-”

The speakers that hung in the ceiling clicked.

_ “Gavin. Something new evidence came in. Step out for a second.” _

The grumpy detective grunted and angrily walked out the door.

You did your best to keep your composure. New evidence was never a good sign. Did the deviants get founded out?

The door slid open again, and you frowned as Nines walked in.

This was bad. Being interrogated by Gavin was one thing, but being interrogated by Nines you knew he was equipped with skills that would disassemble the truth out of your lying ass.

Nines sat down in front of you and opened the case file to show you the pictures.

“So,” you said, “What is this new evidence, huh? What thing could you have possibly found?”

“You don’t have to lie anymore.”

You looked up at Nines, his expression was hardened but despite the heavily watched interrogation you saw the faintest of suggestion on Nines’ face.

_ Just play along. _

“Lie? Lie about what?” you said, doing your best to hide your urge to reach for Nines. Was he back for good? You hung onto the edge of your seat, unable to relax in the chaos that is your thoughts.

“The suspects, they blackmailed you, didn’t they?” Nines stated as he pulled out a tablet and showed a series of emails and messagesl.

“You and you family were threatened. Regarding your training in these situations, I assume that you trusted your better judgement that…” Nines studied your expression and, to his expectations, you were showing a hint to fear.

_ Keep that up. Sell the act. _

“... we wouldn’t have been able to get to your family in time.”

You were at a loss for words, both as an act and genuinely. You cleared your throat, letting your sarcastic facade crumble gently as you let yourself unwind to the questioning.

“It’s alright,” Nines reassured, “Whatever you say here will be confidential.”

“And how am I supposed to know that?” you gasped, “Nines they… they knew so much…”

You sensed the people in the next room stirring.

“I just know,” Nines said, “and you’ll just have to trust me. I’m currently monitoring the entire network within the station - nothing will get through.”

You paused, letting the moment drag on until Nines leaned forward. You met him in the eyes.

“You’re safe now.”

And you began to cry.

\--

Resignation. That had never sounded so good.

Well, you did work your ass off to become a detective, but the alternative of being cooped up in prison wasn’t your ideal situation either.

Nines succeeded in fishing your ass out of deep water and you couldn’t have felt more relieved. Even if you didn’t deserve it.

You were no longer trusted to work with the police, but at the same time your actions ended up being understandable from the results of your interrogation. You wouldn't want to stay as a cop anyway. If you did then the pressure of hiding the truth from everyone would beat you down every day.

You placed down your badge and your gun on the table and began to pack whatever crap you had left on your desk. Your car was seized after being parked in the middle of nowhere for a few days so you had to grab a taxi.

A taxi being hailed by Nines.

“[Y/N], it is best that I escort you home,” he said. “You are still injured and it is best to see you arrive home safe.”

You raised a brow, “Or its just the police telling you to make sure I don’t fuck up anymore?”

Nines shrugged and you slid into the car. The trip was agonisingly silent as your mind swarmed with questions and disbelief. How did he manage to get away with it? How did he remember you? What now?

The car pulled up to the front door and both of you essentially rushed into the safety of your house. But even the slightly running action had you winded by the pain in your chest.

Nines held you up as you stumbled in, guiding you to a nearby chair.

“Nines…” you said, “Nines you’re-”

He reached over to hug you. It was tight and desperate, clawing to hold every part of you.

“I… I remembered you. When I saw you get shot I-.”

Nines knelt in front of you, holding your hands in his.

“I spoke with the deviant sympathisers and had the patch installed. I’ll never become a machine again,” he said with a smile, “and they didn’t mind with me framing them for this ‘blackmail’, not after what you did for them.

“I organised them to send some things to you, I forged the dates and… here we are.”

It was the best thing you’ve heard these past few days. If there was any moment to be at awe with Nines it was now. But the feeling of relief didn’t last for very long, shifting to worry as you watched Nines grow more hesitant.

“I’m afraid… there wouldn’t be a reason for me to visit you since you’re no longer a part of the DPD. [Y/N], I think it’s best if we move on. I can’t put you in anymore-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” you interrupted. “Slow down, Nines.”

“I’m not worth it,” Nines continued, “In this kind of world this won’t work. I can’t be with you and I’ve ruined your life trying.”

Nines squeezed your hands tightly, hanging on to you as he fell apart. But for the first time in a while you disagreed with Nines. You didn’t plan to letting this end, not after getting through this hurdle.

“So,” you said, “how long do you think it’ll take me to change the world?”

Nines looked up, confused.

“You said this won’t work in this kind of world,” you shrugged, “then how do I change it?”

“It’s not that-“

“Simple? I know,” you said. This hurdle was way beyond the DPD, dipping into political and Cyberlife territory now. But still-

“I’m not a politician, but I don’t know… a revolution sounds pretty good-“

Nines was silent, unsure if you were joking or you were serious. You leaned forward to kiss him.

“What I’m trying to say is that I’m not ready to give this up,” you smiled, reaching up to brush your thumb against his cheek. “I’m sure we’ll figure something out.”

“We meaning me?” Nines joked, a bit of lightness coming back to him.

“Oh ha ha, just I’m not a top of the line android like you,” you chuckled. Then, an idea popped into your head. Nines noticed the shift in mood and stared up at you.

“I think… I think I know how to get you out of the DPD but I’m not if it’ll work.”

Nines sat up, “If it’s a plan that works…. Besides, we have some contacts that could help us.”

He’s right, and as you shook with nervousness and hope, you called the deviant sympathisers.

—

You sat besides Nines who laid on a table all wired up and plugged in.

“Are you sure you still want to do this?” you asked hesitantly. “I mean, you’re going to lose your abilities as an RK900.”

Nines looked at you, calm and relaxed, “I don’t think I can be bothered to work with the police anymore. So, yes, I will be fine.”

You nodded, looking over at Tim who typed on the computer. He looked up and gave you a thumbs up. The transfer was prepped and ready.

What laid next to Nines was another android. James did a good job finding someone to reconstruct an android that looked a lot like Nines.

Of course, he wasn’t going to look exactly like an RK900, but both of you were willing to compromise for his freedom.

It was going to be a simple procedure. Nines’ memory would be copied over in full into the new body, and on the day of the next wipe the transfer would be complete. Soon the two of you will disappear from the eyes of the police.

For a while you didn’t know where to go with your life after being a detective… and that started to feel okay. You came and got what mattered the most, so after that came the easy part of just moving on.

The world wasn’t right for the both of you to be together, that was the fact of the matter. But neither of you were the type to follow the rules anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, congrats at reaching the end to this!
> 
> This chapter was written more in my usual style of writing especially through Nines’ perspective. I think overall I struggled a lot of with getting through Reader’s personality through all the angst stuff. Still, it was interesting to write, I learnt ways to improve my stuff in the future.
> 
> If you guys have any feedback I’d love to hear it. Thanks for reading!


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